Witness in Albert Ojwang murder case dies before testimony

Stephen Maina Nderitu, a key prosecution witness in the murder case of teacher and blogger Albert Ojwang, has died. Nderitu, a police officer attached to the Office of the Officer Commanding Station (OCS) at Nairobi Central Police Station, reportedly collapsed and died on a Monday shortly after leaving work.

A postmortem examination cited acute ulcers, cardiac arrest, and depression as the causes of death. His passing occurs at a critical stage in the trial, as he was expected to testify regarding the circumstances surrounding Ojwang’s death in June 2025 while in police custody.

Nderitu had previously provided a statement to investigators on May 18, 2025. His anticipated testimony was expected to address allegations of CCTV hard drive tampering at the station and provide a link to the then OCS, Samson Talam. The prosecution alleges that Ojwang was tortured and strangled while in custody, and that relevant CCTV footage may have been deleted.