CCTV, guards link Matara to murder of Starlet Wahu
Courts
By
Lenox Sengre
| Oct 02, 2025
The murder trial of Nairobi socialite Starlet Wahu on January 3, 2024, intensified at the High Court in Milimani as four key witnesses took the stand, tightening the noose around John Matara, the prime suspect in the crime.
The prosecution, led by Della Wilbey, Sarah Ogweno and Peris Maina, lined up a clinical officer, a police forensic analyst, and two security guards whose testimonies painted a chilling sequence of events on the night Wahu was killed at Papino Apartments, South B.
First on the stand was Isaiah Omondi Olang, a clinical officer at South B Hospital, who said he treated Matara that very night. The accused stumbled in with two stab wounds — one on his thigh and another on his hand, while visibly drunk.
Olang told the court he and his colleagues stopped the bleeding, administered painkillers, and referred Matara to Mbagathi Hospital.
READ MORE
Inside MPs' plan to free Kenyans from clutches of rogue lenders
Confusion as Kenyan seafarers denied passes due to lack of NEA certificates
The irony of Ruto's sugar revival plan targeting mass layoffs
How economic numbers betray Ruto ahead of 2027 polls
Why hiring by firms has hit new high
Debt crisis: Kenya secures another Sh193.8 billion Eurobond
Uncertainty as Rivatex fires 3000 employees
itel banks on AI-powered tech to increase market presence
The second witness, Constable Elizabeth Njuguna, a forensic video analyst, presented nine CCTV clips and 23 still photos from January 3. The footage, she said, ran in proper sequence with no tampering.
READ: Airbnb owner recounts chilling scene of Starlet Wahu's murder
It showed a man, clad in a black cap, bluish long-sleeved shirt, brown trousers and carrying a red bag entering Papino Apartments with a woman that evening.
Minutes later, at 10:09 pm, the same man reappeared alone, now with a white cloth around his neck and a suspicious bloodstain on his leg. He skipped the lift, used the staircase, then descended to the ground floor where he left the premises at 10:11 pm.
Constable Njuguna admitted the footage didn’t capture his face clearly, but her analysis was consistent with the timeline of Wahu’s death.
Two security guards, Joseph Ndungi and George Gitau, gave the most damning testimony.
ALSO READ: Starlet Wahu's tragic tale of fame, faith and consequences
Ndungi testified he saw a man in a blue t-shirt, white towel and khaki trousers, his legs smeared with what looked like blood, leaving Papino Apartments. Suspicious, Ndungi phoned Gitau, who was stationed inside, and together they reviewed CCTV footage before tracing a blood trail up to door Y32 on the fourth floor.
With the help of the apartment owner, they unlocked the house and walked into a horror scene.
Starlet Wahu’s naked body lay lifeless on the floor, blood spattered from the bedroom to the sitting room, her neck bearing visible injuries.
Ndungi later pointed to Matara in the dock, insisting he was the same man he saw that night.
Gitau corroborated the account, explaining he missed the suspect’s exit as he had been away checking water tanks.
The trial resumes today with more witnesses expected to testify.