By Grace Mutindi
Agriculture Cabinet Secretary nominee Mithika Linturi has breathed a sigh of relief after a woman who had accused him of sexual assault withdrew the case.
This is after the two settled the matter out of court.
The woman had claimed the former Meru Senator sneaked into her room at a hotel in Nanyuki on January 30 last year and sexually assaulted her while her husband was away.
But in an affidavit, the woman indicated that she had resolved to withdraw the case after discussing the matter with Mr Linturi.
During mentioning of the case, the prosecution team asked the court to drop the case as the complainant had withdrawn from it.
Mr Linturi had pleaded not guilty to the two counts of sexual assault and indecent act and was out on Sh200, 000 cash bail that the court ordered refunded back.
In his court submissions, the CS nominee said some people roughed him up and stripped him of his clothes.
He further claimed that the people took his nude photos and threatened to share them online unless he paid them Sh1 million ransom.
Milimani Chief Magistrate Susan Shitubi consequently allowed the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions to drop the criminal charges offering Mr Linturi a lifeline ahead of vetting by Parliament.
