A bus driver has denied 12 traffic charges in a Kisumu court after a crash that claimed the lives of two Technical University of Mombasa (TUM) students and left several other passengers hurt.
Jotham Murumba Wanjala took the plea before Senior Principal Magistrate Evelyn Makungu Onzere at Nyando Law Courts. The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) brought the case over the August 7, 2026 crash on the Ahero–Awasi Highway in Kisumu County.
Prosecution Counsel Douglas Moseti told the court that Wanjala is responsible for the deaths of Evance Odiwour Otieno and Rooney Owek Gakumba. Two of the charges allege causing death by dangerous driving, an offence under Section 46 of the Traffic Act, Cap. 403, Laws of Kenya.
Ten more charges allege driving without due care and attention under Section 49(1) of the same Act. Each one relates to a passenger who was injured when the vehicle left the road.
According to the charge sheet, Wanjala drove at a speed and in a manner dangerous to the public. Prosecutors say he then lost control, and the bus veered off the carriageway.
The crash happened in Boya, Nyando Sub-County. The bus was part of a convoy ferrying mourners to the burial of Elvis “Beast” Otieno, a former TUM student leader.
Despite the plea, Wanjala was released after the court set his bond at Ksh 500,000, with no option of cash bail. He will return to court on November 5, 2026, when the case will be mentioned.
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