A businessman who was wanted by police over claims of murder surrendered hours after an alert was issued on him.

Philip Nahashon Aroko surrendered to police at DCI headquarters in company of his lawyer Danstan Omari and declared he is innocent.

The businessman stated that he was ready to respond to any queries from detectives regarding the matter as he has nothing to hide, however adding that the probe was being hijacked by political issues.

Aroko blamed his summoning by the police on Homa Bay Governor Gladys Wanga, whom he accused of attempting to link him to MP Were’s murder, as he urged the county chief to provide the evidence of his involvement if she has any.

“The situation that we are in is very unfortunate. I don’t want to talk about it because it’s under investigation, I want to leave it for the police to do their job. But they summoned me to come and I am here, if anybody has anything that they want to ask me I’ll be ready to answer,” said Aroko.

“But I want to tell the people of Homa Bay County that the politics in that county has been turned into madness, it is not politics, it is thuggery. I saw the Governor pushing so much for me to be called here, she is even making calls to the police for me to be called here to make a statement. She has achieved it now…I want to tell her that we’re changing the politics from thuggery to civilized politics in that constituency.”

He further added: “Because those who fight and kill and maim people are employees of the county government of Homa Bay; they’re on her payroll, she has never talked about anything. But she has achieved this one for me to be here. I know the main reason is because of the burial.”

Lawyer Omari also went ahead to claim that Aroko’s summoning had very little to do with facts but rather county politics, noting that powerful individuals seemingly do not want him to attend the late MP Were’s burial.

“We have instructions that the reason why Mheshimiwa Aroko is being called to appear is to make him not attend the funeral. Politics of exclusion during funerals will not survive in this country; Mheshimiwa has a right to attend and bury and proceed with the final rituals of the late Sir Charles,” he said.

“Anybody who is scared of his popularity…rumour has it that they want to detain him, charge him for murder and deny him bail…the law has been settled, Mheshimiwa Kapondi has been elected when he was in prison serving a jail sentence.”

Omari later confirmed that Aroko, from the DCI headquarters, presented himself to the Gigiri Police Station where he was booked and will now spend the night until Thursday, when he will be interrogated.

“We want to confirm that our client Philip Aroko who we were with, we have brought him to Gigiri Police Station. We have handed over our client to the relevant officers. He is safe and has no problems at all – he’s willing and has been treated very well,” he said.

“He has been allowed access to his advocates, wife and there is no cause of alarm. The police will deal with this matter as provided for by the police standing order. He will be interrogated, he will record his statements in the presence of his advocates.”

He was wanted over murder of Kaspul MP Ong’ondo Were.

“I am innocent. They are framing me to show it was a local issue,” he said.

Omari said he will defend him to the end.

The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) Wednesday issued a public appeal for Aroko to immediately surrender himself to the nearest police station.

This is in connection with ongoing probe into the murder of Were on April 30, 2025.

Police said Aroko is a person of interest in the ongoing investigation into the brutal murder of Were.

In an official statement, the DCI emphasized that compliance with this request is not optional.

“We urge Philip Nahashon Aroko to present himself to law enforcement authorities without delay. His cooperation is critical to the progress of this investigation,” the statement read.

The late Were death has shocked the nation.

So far six suspects including a board member of a board member of a parastatal.

The others are his bodyguard, a driver and the gunmen who pulled the trigger.

The police have also recovered the weapon that was used in the shooting and other tools that are crucial in the probe.

The DCI has vowed to leave no stone unturned in pursuing justice for the victim and his family.

Authorities are also appealing to the public for any information that may lead to Aroko’s location.

An autopsy has shown he was shot five times and that the bullets raptured vital organs including his heart. Were who was serving his second term in Parliament was shot and killed on April 30 along Valley Road near the City Mortuary. His driver together with the bodyguard who was seated on the backseat escaped unhurt. The bodyguard jumped out of the car as the gunman had hoped onto a getaway motorcycle.

Witnesses said he chased the motorcycle for a short distance before he raced back to the car to join the driver and rushed the bleeding MP to then nearby Nairobi Hospital. The detectives handling the matter have been moving around with the two to reconstruct scenes where the MP was before he was trailed and shot dead. This came as police on Tuesday raided houses in Kayole’s Chokaa area and recovered a pistol that was used in the murder.

The team also found a second pistol that is now under tests to confirm if it had been used in any crimes. Ballistic tests show the weapon that killed Were had been used to commit crimes in three incidents in Kayole, Komarocks and Ndumberi in Kiambu County. This followed an analysis on spent bullets that were recovered from the scene of the shooting and the deceased’s body.

The police also recovered shoes and a bag that the killer had on the day the MP was killed.

The man was captured on camera wearing the same shoes.

He also carried the bag that is believed to have contained the gun used in the murder. Four suspects are in custody over the murder which happened One of the suspects arrested had Sh615,000 in his house in Nairobi believed to have been paid for the mission. Detectives are trying to establish the source of the money and the motive.

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