The hearing of a case where two purporting civil registration officers were charged with issuing fake birth certificates proceeded today in court.
In the case, Peter Gichua Muiruri and Florida Atsiko were charged with forging 38 birth certificates of birth purporting to be certificates of birth issued by the department of civil registration services.
Mr. Mwongela, a forensic investigator and a witness in the case told Court that he received certificates of birth containing sample signatures for examination under the escort of PC Lazarus Njuguna from DCI Forensic Investigation
The officer also testified that he received specimen signatures of the registrar of birth and death, the Central registry in Nairobi as well as a signature specimen from the National registration officer.
The forensic expert told the court that the essence of his examination was to ascertain whether the collected samples were made by the same authors when compared with specimens of known signatures from the accused persons.
He said that after examination, it was clear that the signatures appearing on the birth certificates were not made by the registrar of persons as indicated on the certificates.
Charity Wajohi, Registrar of persons in Murang’a County and a witness in the case also told the Court that she received an inquiry letter on October 30, 2019, to verify 44 birth certificates to confirm whether they were genuine.
She said that out of the 44 certificates, only 3 were valid. She produced a report dated October 31, 2019, indicating the certificates that were genuine and those which were not genuine.
Asked to list the features of a genuine birth certificate according to the registrar of persons, she said that a valid certificate must;
1. Appear in the register of the registrar of persons.
2. Have a unique entry number.
3. Have the child’s name.
4. Have the parent’s name
5. Have the date of birth of the child.
6. Have the place of birth.
7. Have the date of registration.
8. Have the signature of the registrar who signed the certificate.
9. Have the seal of the registrar of persons.
She, however, told the court that the forged birth certificates had all the features but the unique entry numbers could not be traced from the official register of the office of the registrar of persons, and the numbers could not match the names of the children appearing on the certificates.
The case was adjourned to December 1, 2022, when the prosecution will produce its last witness in the matter.
