The inquest into the death of 55-year-old househelp Zaitun Kavaya took a turn as the man who was once charged with her murder took the stand and gave his account of what happened on the day she fell from a fifth-floor apartment in Kilimani.

Hussan Ahmed, a Sudanese national and Zaitun’s former employer, told the court he was barely a metre away from her when she leapt from the balcony, describing the moment as sudden and deeply shocking.

He said he was on a phone call at the time and watched it happen right before his eyes.

According to Ahmed’s testimony, the moments leading up to the fall were tense.

He had confronted Zaitun over the alleged theft of Sh5,000 and threatened to hand her over to the police.

He told the court that the accusation appeared to have shaken her deeply, suggesting that the distress of that moment may have pushed her to take her own life.

Ahmed, who was initially charged with murder before the case was converted into an inquest, now finds himself on the other side of proceedings as a witness rather than a suspect.

The shift marks a significant turn in a case that has raised difficult questions about what truly happened inside that apartment.

The inquest is ongoing as the court works to establish the exact circumstances surrounding Zaitun’s death and determine whether anyone bears criminal responsibility for the tragedy.