I Spent Ksh59 Million On DJ Evolve- Babu Owino
The lawmaker told Milimani Senior Principal Magistrate Benard Ochoi in court that he was committed to supporting the injured DJ
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Embakasi East Member of Parliament (MP) Babu Owino on Thursday, June 16 claimed to have spent Ksh58.6 million in medical expenses on Felix Orinda popularly known as DJ Evolve, whom he allegedly shot at B Club in the Kilimani area, Nairobi.
The lawmaker told Milimani Senior Principal Magistrate Benard Ochoi in court that he was committed to supporting the injured DJ on the basis of a long-term friendship that began all the way in 2015.
"While in Nyalenda slums in Kisumu, I vowed that I will always give back to those who need help if I ever made it out of poverty," said Babu.
While defending himself in a matter where he was found to have a case to answer over misuse of a firearm, Babu added that he also spent Ksh17 million on an apartment in the affluent residential area for the disc jockey, where he currently resides.
Embakasi East MP, Babu Owino during a past court session. /FILE
"The family was not able to take care of him and as a leader, I continued paying the medical bills. Total bills accumulated to Ksh23 million.
"He was immobile and could not move. I bought an apartment at Kilimani at around Ksh17 million and hired two nurses, 2 physiotherapists and 1 occupational therapist which up to date I'm paying Ksh300,000 per month,” the Embakasi legislator argued.
Babu also argued that “I have paid Ksh11.1 million and it's still going on for 37 months. I take care of his upkeep of Ksh70,000 per month to pay bills and food. Medicine is Ksh80,000 per month. I have paid Ksh5.5 million for 37 months.”
The MP told the court that on the day he was said to have committed the offence, January 16, 2020, his gun had jammed and therefore there was no possibility that it was the one that fired.
He said that from the ballistic report presented to the court, no evidence was adduced by the Prosecution to show that the bullet shown at the court had matched that of his firearm.
"The gun could not shoot. The bullet could have come from another firearm," he dismissed having a gun in the club in the first place.
He further told the court that from 10 prosecution witnesses who testified none of them pointed a finger that he was involved in the shooting.
The court heard that the Prosecution did not bring the results of the DNA tests taken at the government chemist to justify their case, with the lawmaker also arguing that none of the doctors from government chemists was called to come and testify.
Babu also noted that the charges brought against him touching on being disorderly and holding a gun in the club were not justified, further pointing out that the CCTV footage produced in court on the matter did not capture him behaving disorderly or holding a gun as claimed.
He is led in his defence by his Lawyers Duncan Okatch and Elisha Ogoya who argued that at some time the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) had recommended to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) to withdraw the criminal case against him.
He informed the court that he will be calling five witnesses who will support his evidence. The matter was adjourned to Thursday, June 22.
DJ Evolve on Thursday, April 20 celebrated regaining his voice after three years of being unable to speak normally. His father, John Orinda, had previously noted that he needed at least three surgeries to regain his voice, adding that the tracheostomy he relied on had a blockage.
“We asked the doctor who has been treating Evolve since the shooting how long Evolve has to stay with the tube and he said my son has a blockage that needs to be removed.
"It will need three surgeries and they are not very easy to do. This is when he will get his voice back,” John Orinda said.
The entertainer would later issue an update to his fans that his voice was restored after undergoing a successful eight-hour surgery on March 6, 2023.
A Nairobi court had in 2021 approved a deal between Babu Owino and DJ Evolve to have an attempted murder case against the Legislator withdrawn. The Director of Public Prosecution had charged Owino with the attempted murder of DJ Evolve after the incident which sparked a nationwide uproar.
Felix Orinda alias DJ Evolve during his first TV interview since the shooting incident involving Embakasi East MP Babu Owino. /NTV
