A German national has been arrested and held at Nakuru Central Police Station after a Nakuru Law Court issued a warrant of arrest against him for failing to appear in court.
The Nakuru Central Police Station OCPD Samson Andanje stated that Martin Baumgartner presented himself at the station, where he was arrested and placed in custody.
“We have a German national accused of sexual offences in our custody; he presented himself following court warrants issued against him,” he added.
On Friday morning, the court was forced to adjourn the hearing against Baumgartner for not appearing in court.
The Principal Magistrate, Vincent Adet, issued a warrant of arrest against him for failing to appear in court.
The prosecutor, Annastacia Mumbe, sought the order informing the court that she had two witnesses under witness protection ready to proceed with the case.
She argued that the prosecution had sent a court orderly to confirm if Baumgartner was in a different court as stated by his lawyer, but in vain.
“I pray for warrants of arrest to be issued against the accused. I opposed the application for seeking an adjournment of the case without the accused in court,” she said.
She noted that his lawyer should have informed him to appear in court, insisting that court attendance was mandatory.
She alleged that this wasn’t the first time the accused had failed to appear in court, claiming to be absconding and later appearing with hospital documents.
The prosecutor observed that the witnesses had missed four hearings, wasting taxpayers' money.
In a twist of events, the accused's counsel informed the court that the German was in a different court, forcing the prosecutor to send the court orderly to check the said court, but he wasn’t there.
Ms Kemunto, the accused's counsel, informed the court that Baumgartner's lawyer, David Mongeri, handling the case, was bereaved and couldn’t attend, seeking adjournment.
Kemunto further claimed she had spoken to the prosecution and the victim's lawyer not to avail the witnesses, a claim denied.
The victims' lawyer, Katherine Chepkulul, refuted the allegations, stating that there weren’t sufficient reasons to warrant an adjournment seeking a warrant of arrest issued against the accused.
The court ruled that the defense had failed to produce sufficient evidence regarding the whereabouts of the accused.
Baumgartner, the Director of Twajenga Holdings, took a plea on February 20, 2023.
The 64-year-old is facing 14 counts of defilement, indecent act, and human trafficking, allegedly committed between the years 2006 and 2023 within the Bahati sub-county.
He was released on a bond of Sh1 million with a Kenyan surety of a similar amount.
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