The estranged husband of Australian teacher Gabrielle Maina, who was shot dead last Thursday in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi in what was initially reported as a bag-snatch robbery, has been arrested in connection with her death.
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Cyrus Bernard Maina Njuguna, along with another man, John Njuguna Waithira, were arrested on Tuesday, the ABC reports. Their lawyer is currently seeking their release from custody.
Ms Maina was shot in the relatively wealthy suburb of Karen, Nairobi, at around 10am on Thursday morning by men on motorbikes, after she had dropped one of her two young sons at a friend’s house.
Earlier this week, her lawyer called for further investigations into the motives behind Ms Maina’s death amid revelations that she had taken a restraining order out against her estranged husband in April this year, the ABC reports.
“She required a restraining order against the husband for constantly stalking, approaching her place of work and as well as the residence,” Kingori told the ABC. “It is important for them [Department of Foreign Affairs] to keep on pushing until it is certain as to what caused her death.”
“The shooting happened when she was kneeling and someone was standing,” he added.
According to The Guardian, Ms Maina’s husband and the other suspect could face the death penalty if convicted of her murder.
Ms Maina was originally from Armidale in country New South Wales and was in Kenya working as the head teacher at Nairobi’s Hillcrest Preparatory School.