Court fines owner, driver and conductor of 'rogue' matatu

The owner, driver, and conductor of one of the PSV matatus caught on camera being driven recklessly along Kenol-Sagana Highway have been charged at Kenol law courts in Murang’a county.

Mr Joel Mwangi Karanja,45, who is the owner of the matatu KCF 996R, was presented before Resident Magistrate Sheila Nyaga, accused of allowing his vehicle to operate as a public service vehicle (PSV) without abiding to the traffic laws and regulations of operating such a vehicle. He pleaded guilty and fined Sh20,000 or jailed for six (6) months.

Peter Njoroge Wanjiku, who was driving the vehicle, was charged with three counts of driving recklessly along Kenol-Sagana Highway, risking the lives of road users, driving an unroadworthy vehicle and lacking a PSV driver badge.

The driver pleaded guilty and was fined Sh60,000 or face a one-year jail term for driving recklessly, Sh50,000 or 6 months in jail for driving an unroadworthy vehicle and another Sh10,000 or 3 months in jail for driving without a PSV driver badge.

The magistrate then ordered a suspension of his driving license for 12 months.

The conductor, Dennis Karanja Mwangi, who is also the son to the owner of the motor vehicle was charged with two counts, hanging carelessly on the door risking his own life and operating as a conductor without proper documentation.

He pleaded guilty and was fined Sh2,000 or one month in jail for the first account and Sh10,000 or 3 months in jail for the second count.

This comes after the regional traffic officer-Central region Elizabeth Vivi confirmed a manhunt for owner and driver of the other matatu also captured by the camera who has not yet presented himself to the police.

Vivi has warned motorists plying the Kenol-Sagana Highway to observe road safety and abide by road traffic rules. The regional traffic officer lauded the members of the public for their continuity in exposing and shouting out the road users who are breaking the law.