The widow of the late Dutch businessman Tob Cohen, Sarah Wairimu Kamotho, is once again in legal trouble after detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) unearthed what they believe was a secret plan to flee the country.
Wairimu, already facing murder charges in connection with Cohen’s 2019 killing, was on Friday arraigned at the Kibera Law Courts on fresh charges of giving false information to a police officer and swearing a false affidavit regarding the alleged loss of her passport.
According to court documents, Wairimu falsely reported to police that her passport — No. BK043532 — had been lost. Investigations revealed that she made the report with the intention of acquiring a new travel document to facilitate her escape from the country.
DCI detectives say the suspect walked into a police station earlier this year, claiming she had misplaced her passport. The officer on duty, unaware of the deceit, issued her with a police abstract confirming the loss. That same day, Wairimu allegedly traveled to Pamki House in Nyeri Town, where she appeared before Advocate Muchiri wa Gathoni and swore a false affidavit affirming that the passport had indeed been lost.
Armed with both the abstract and the sworn affidavit, Wairimu proceeded to the Immigration Department in Nairobi, where she submitted an application for a new passport. However, detectives from the DCI swiftly intervened after learning of her actions. Their investigations revealed that the original passport had not been lost, but was instead in the custody of the DCI as part of ongoing investigations into the brutal murder of her husband.
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In September 2019, the lifeless body of Tob Cohen was discovered inside a septic tank in their Kitisuru home, more than two months after he had been reported missing. The grim discovery shocked the nation and thrust Wairimu, his wife, into the center of a sensational murder investigation. She was subsequently charged with murder, a case that is still pending before the High Court.
On Friday, after the completion of the latest round of investigations, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) approved the new charges against Wairimu. She was presented before Principal Magistrate Zainab Abdul at the Kibera Law Courts, where she pleaded not guilty to both counts. The prosecution argued that her actions were deliberate and intended to obstruct justice by misleading investigators and potentially fleeing the country to evade trial.
The prosecution further urged the court to deny her bond, citing her previous attempts to frustrate the investigation and her demonstrated intent to abscond. “The accused person made calculated moves to obtain new travel documents while fully aware that her old passport was held as an exhibit in an ongoing murder case,” a state prosecutor told the court.
Magistrate Abdul ordered that Wairimu be remanded at Lang’ata Women’s Prison pending further directions from the court. The matter has been scheduled for mention on November 25, 2025, when a pretrial conference will be held to chart the way forward.
Outside the court, the DCI maintained that the new development highlights a “pattern of deception and obstruction” that has characterized the suspect’s conduct since the onset of the Cohen murder case. “We are determined to ensure that justice is served — not just for the late Tob Cohen but for the integrity of our justice system,” said a senior investigator familiar with the matter.
Meanwhile, the defense team dismissed the new charges as “a witch-hunt” meant to vilify Wairimu and divert attention from delays in the main murder trial. Her lawyer argued that his client has always cooperated with the authorities and that there was no concrete evidence suggesting she intended to flee.
As the legal battle intensifies, Kenyans are once again watching closely, revisiting the unresolved questions surrounding the death of Tob Cohen — a case that has gripped the country for more than six years.
The case will be mentioned on November 25, 2025, for a pretrial conference.
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