By Andrew Kariuki
The High Court in Nairobi has heard further evidence in the murder trial of John Matara Ong’oa, who is accused of killing 24 year old socialite Starlet Wahu on January 3, 2024, at Papino Apartments in South B.
The prosecution, led by Prosecution Counsel Ms. Della Wilbey, presented two additional witnesses before Justice Alexander Muteti at the Milimani High Court.
Government Chemist Emily Oporo told the court that forensic analysis linked both the deceased and the accused to key exhibits recovered from the scene.
She testified that DNA profiles matching Starlet Wahu and John Matara were found on a knife believed to be the murder weapon and on a towel recovered from the apartment.
The court also heard that other various DNA samples obtained from the Airbnb contained both the deceased’s and the accused’s blood profiles.
Corporal Horace Arwa, the arresting officer attached to South B Police Station, gave a detailed account of how the accused was apprehended.
He told the court that he responded to a report made by two women who had found a woman lying in a pool of blood inside house number Y32 at Papino Apartments.
“My lord, I rushed to the scene and found the body of a woman lying naked in a pool of blood,” Arwa testified, adding that the deceased was later identified as Starlet Wahu.
According to Arwa, after securing the scene, he received information that the suspect had been seen near South B Hospital carrying a towel soaked in blood.
Upon arriving at South B Hospital, he was informed that the suspect had been referred to Mbagathi Hospital.
“At Mbagathi Hospital, we found the accused being attended to by two male nurses. His clothes were soaked in blood and he had a white towel wrapped around his waist,” Arwa told the court.
The officer said he questioned Matara while he was receiving treatment.
“My lord, I asked him if at all he knew the lady. He identified the lady as one called Starlet, whom he claimed was his girlfriend,” Arwa testified.
He testified to the court that he directly asked Matara why he had killed the lady he was with at the apartment.
He further told the court that Matara allegedly admitted to stabbing the deceased during a confrontation.
“My lord, upon further interrogation, the accused person said that all he can remember was that they had a scuffle with the lady and he managed to stab the lady on the right thigh,” Arwa said.
However, the officer stated that he could not proceed with further questioning because medical personnel were attending to the accused at the time.
“The suspect had multiple wounds that I could not say were multiple stab wounds as he was being attended to,” Arwa added, noting that they informed the nurses that the patient was a murder suspect.
Upon discharge from hospital, Matara was arrested together with Andrew Nyongesa, who had allegedly taken him for treatment.
Arwa told the court that he seized the accused’s blood-stained clothes and booked them as exhibits, which were later produced in court.
Matara pleaded not guilty on February 2, 2024, to the charge of murdering Wahu.
The hearing continues on Wednesday, February 11, 2026.
