The Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has consolidated two separate murder cases into one, bringing together five suspects accused of killing Kasipul MP Charles Ong’ondo Were.

Lady Justice Diana Kavedza had on Monday allowed the application to merge the cases that had been filed at the Kibera and Milimani Law Courts, enabling the prosecution to proceed with a joint trial.

According to the charge sheet, the five suspects, William Imoli Shigali, Edwin Oduor Odhiambo alias Machuani, Ebel Ochieng alias Dave Calo, Isaac Kuria Chege alias Kush, and Allan Omondi Ogola, are accused of murdering Hon. Were on the evening of April 30, 2025, at around 7:40 p.m., near the City Mortuary Roundabout along Ngong Road in Kilimani, Nairobi County.

The prosecution told the court that merging the cases was necessary to ensure consistency in handling the matter and to avoid conflicting outcomes.

Earlier, Shigali, Oduor, and Ochieng had pleaded not guilty to the murder charge at the Kibera High Court, while Kuria and Omondi had entered similar pleas at the Milimani Law Court.

Adding that the court will continue to treat each accused as innocent until proven guilty, Justice Kavedza noted that consolidating the charges would serve the interest of justice to the family of the late Charles Were.

She further directed that bond hearings proceed separately for the two groups of suspects. “The bond ruling for the first three accused will be delivered on August 14, 2025, while that for the other two will be heard on September 22, 2025,” the judge ordered.

The ruling paves the way for the case to proceed as one, setting the stage for what is expected to be a closely watched trial.