A court in Eldoret has heard harrowing details of how a disagreement over a bottle of beer allegedly led to the fatal stabbing of a young lawyer during a three-day house party hosted by a former college mate.
The accused, lawyer Abel Mogaka, is facing murder charges in connection with the death of his colleague, Calvin Musachi Ngaira, who succumbed to neck injuries allegedly caused by a broken glass of beer. The incident occurred six years ago during a party hosted at an apartment in the Annex area along the Eldoret-Nakuru highway by Roy Barasa, a mutual friend and former classmate at the Kenya School of Law.
Testifying before Justice Robert Wananda, Inspector Sofia Ibrahim Hassan, attached to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations in Eldoret, told the court that the fight broke out after Ngaira confronted Mogaka for serving beer to his cousin — a guest who, it was later revealed, was not a lawyer.
“The altercation escalated into a scuffle when the deceased demanded to know who had authorized Mogaka to serve beer to a non-lawyer guest,” said Inspector Sofia, the final prosecution witness in the trial.
According to the officer, CCTV footage played in court showed Mogaka holding a glass of beer in his right hand as he attempted to leave the house, followed closely by Ngaira, who was seen throwing punches. The confrontation spilled outside, where six people — including Mogaka’s cousin, who was allegedly armed with a rungu — joined the escalating conflict.
During the confrontation, the court heard, Mogaka allegedly stabbed Ngaira in the neck using a broken glass. The deceased bled profusely and later died while receiving treatment at Mediheal Hospital in Eldoret.
Among the evidence presented were a bloodstained black-and-white T-shirt belonging to Ngaira and broken glass pieces retrieved from the crime scene, which are being used as exhibits.
Former Moi University student Edith Chebet, another key witness, told the court that she saw the accused deliberately strike Ngaira with the glass during the scuffle.
“I remember very well that Mogaka was the one who started the commotion,” said Chebet, who struggled to hold back tears during her testimony. “We tried to separate them before it got worse. I even took photos of the glass shards with my phone.”
Senior Crime Investigator Inspector Daniel Kieni from DCI Nairobi also gave evidence, playing 13 surveillance clips from four CCTV cameras that captured the events leading to the fatal altercation. He narrated how Ngaira appeared agitated in the videos and threw kicks that failed to land on Mogaka before retreating into the apartment after the stabbing.
Mogaka has denied the murder charge and is currently out on a KSh 1 million bond.
Ngaira had only been in legal practice for three months before his untimely death.
Justice Wananda scheduled the next mention of the case for July 28, 2025, as the trial nears conclusion.
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