Kenya: Convicted Murderer Joseph Kuria Irungu Not Among 57 Prisoners Pardoned By Kenyan President

2 June 2025
Africa Check (Johannesburg)
By Dancan Bwire

Convicted murderer Joseph Kuria Irungu not among 57 prisoners pardoned by Kenyan president

IN SHORT: Some social media posts allege that Kenyan killer Joseph Kuria Irungu is among the prisoners granted clemency by president William Ruto. However, this is a case of mistaken identity.

Convicted murderer Joseph Kuria Irungu is among Kenyan prisoners granted clemency by president William Ruto in May 2025, according to graphics and a screenshot of a Kenya Gazette notice circulating on social media. The Kenya Gazette is the government's official publication.

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"Joseph Irungu, alias Jowie, among 57 prisoners pardoned by President Ruto under Power of Mercy Act, he was sentenced to death in Feb 2024 for murder of businesswoman Monica Kimani," one of the graphic reads.

They include the logos of the Standard and TV channel KTN News Kenya, which are both owned by the Standard Group.

Irungu, also known as "Jowie", was accused of murdering entrepreneur Monica Kimani by slitting her throat in Nairobi in September 2018 - a crime that shocked the nation. After an emotionally charged trial, he was found guilty and sentenced to death in February 2024.

His ex-fiancé and former TV presenter Jacque Maribe, who was also a suspect in the murder, was acquitted.

Article 133 of the constitution of Kenya allows the president to grant a free or conditional pardon to a person convicted of an offence, in accordance with the advice of an advisory committee.

The claim has been posted here and here. (Note: See more instances listed at the end of this report.)

But has Irungu been pardoned? We checked.

Mistaken identity

Africa Check searched for the circulating gazette notice, which appears to be the source of the claim, and found it. The notice, dated 8 May, contains the names of prisoners who have been granted a presidential pardon.

The name "Joseph Irungu Maina" appears in the notice. However, official government documents list the full name of the individual in question as Joseph Kuria Irungu. Although the names are similar, they refer to two different people.

Irungu committed the murder in 2018. However, the individual named in the gazette notice has the prisoner number "NAV/219/2015/LS", suggesting that his arrest, trial or conviction occurred before the 2018 murder.

Local and international media closely followed Irungu's case and reported extensively on his arrest, trial and conviction. If the claims were true, his release would have been reported. But we found no such reports. Instead, some local news sites debunked it.

There is no evidence Joseph Kuria Irungu was among those granted clemency.

Read the original story, with links and other resources.
Africa Check is a non-partisan organisation which promotes accuracy in public debate and in the media. Twitter @AfricaCheck and www.africacheck.org

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