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Moi grandson goes missing again, risks arrest over child neglect case
Collins Kibet, the grandson of former President the late Daniel Arap Moi, at a Nakuru Court on September 19, 2024.
What you need to know:
- Mr Kibet, who is accused of neglecting his two children, failed to attend a court session on Thursday.
- After three hours of waiting, the legal team called off the meeting with Kibet's whereabouts still unknown.
The grandson of former President Daniel Arap Moi, Collins Kibet, has gone missing again, despite a Sh1 million personal bond hanging over his head.
Facing potential jail time for contempt of court, Kibet, who is accused of neglecting his two children, failed to attend a court session on Thursday, defying a previous court warning.
Kibet's disappearance came a day after he briefly attended a meeting aimed at negotiating a settlement with his ex-wife Gladys Jeruto Tagi to resolve their ongoing dispute out of court.
However, Kibet vanished before the negotiations could take place.
According to Kibet’s lawyer Andrew Muge, the two parties were scheduled to meet virtually at 2pm on Wednesday.
“I was in contact with Mr Kibet, who had instructed me to arrange a virtual meeting with Ms Tagi and her legal team,” said Mr Muge.
However, when the meeting time approached Kibet became unreachable.
“We set up the meeting from 2,30 pm and waited in vain for him to attend. Efforts to reach out to him via mobile phone were unsuccessful as his number was not going through,” Mr Muge told the court.
After three hours of waiting, the legal team decided to call off the meeting with Kibet's whereabouts still unknown when the case was mentioned in court the following day.
Ms Tagi's lawyer Elizabeth Wangare urged the court to reinstate an arrest warrant against Kibet criticizing his absence as a deliberate ploy to delay the case.
"His conduct does not reflect someone serious about settling the matter out of court," she said, describing Kibet's behavior as a tactic to waste the court’s time.
“When his lawyer reached out to me, we agreed on a virtual meeting scheduled for 2 pm. My client traveled from Eldama Ravine but the defendant was a no-show though his advocate was present,” added lawyer Wangare.
She requested the court to issue an arrest warrant suggesting that Kibet only responds to the threat of arrest.
Kibet's lawyer however pleaded with the court to exercise caution implying that something unforeseen could have happened to Kibet.
Mr Muge said his client was the one who initially requested the meeting indicating his desire to resolve the matter amicably.
Nakuru Principal Magistrate Kipkurui Kibelion deferred the case to November 27.
He warned that should Kibet that if he fails to appear in person for the next court session, a warrant of arrest will be issued.
Kibet is currently facing contempt of court charges after failing to adhere to a court ruling issued on June 24, 2022.
The judgment required him to contribute to the maintenance of his children.
In September, the court briefly jailed Kibet for contempt before vacating the order and granting him a personal bond of Sh1 million, giving him another chance to comply.
Despite the bond, Kibet has maintained that he is financially incapable of supporting his children claiming he has no income and relies on friends and well-wishers for survival.
His financial struggles have become a central issue in the ongoing court battle.
On September 19, Kibet was committed to prison for contempt but the order was lifted a week later allowing him to remain free under a Sh1 million personal bond.