Starlet Wahu: John Matara charged with murder, pleads not guilty

John Matara, the main suspect in the murder of socialite Starlet Wahu has finally been charged with murder at the Milimani High Courts.

Appearing before High Court Judge Kanyi Kimondo on Friday virtually, Matara pleaded not guilty to the murder charges levelled against him by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP).

He was charged with Killing Wahu on January 3, 2024, in a private room in Nairobi’s South B area.

After pleading to the charges, Justice Kimondo granted Matara seven days to file a formal application on his bail request.

The DPP also ordered him to file his response on the bond application within a week before February 26, 2024.

Justice Kimondo further ordered Matara to be remanded at the Industrial Area Remand Prison pending his bail application hearing.

Matara’s prosecution comes after the detectives completed the investigation into the heinous killing of Wahu whose lifeless body was discovered at an apartment in the South B area last month.

Her body was discovered in the private room where she had checked in with a man believed to be her boyfriend.

A post-mortem examination revealed she had been strangled, and a deep-cut wound on her thigh had severed a vein, leading to a substantial loss of blood that ultimately claimed her life.