Blogger Maverick Aoko Otieno was released from police custody on Ksh100,000 bail after pleading not guilty to three counts of publishing false information.
She will return to court for a pretrial hearing on September 2.
Aoko, who was arrested at her home on Friday, August 16, appeared before Chief Magistrate Susan Shitubi.
During the court hearing, it was announced that Aoko’s laptop and phone, which were seized during her arrest, will remain in police custody while detectives continue their investigation.
The allegations are based on a tweet by Aoko dated August 3, 2024, which is said to have been malicious and aimed at damaging the plaintiff’s reputation.
The tweet read: “It confuses me to say this. But Amber Ray is innocent. She did not ruin Jamal Amira’s marriage. Beth did that. She is the daughter of a powerful police officer. So if you see me as kware, refer to this tweet. Ask how Jamal went from Makanga wa South C to being a matatu boss. Ndio naanza.”
According to the indictment, the statements violate Section 23 of the Computer Misuse and Cybercrime Act, 2018.
This section stipulates that a person found guilty of publishing false information causing panic, chaos or violence or damaging the reputation of any person shall be liable to a fine of up to Ksh5 million, 10 years imprisonment, or both.
Three witnesses are scheduled to testify in the case, including Sergeant Norah Shigi, a digital forensics expert at the Kenya Communications Authority, and Chief Inspector Nickson Kinyua.
