German’s defilement case to be heard from next month

A Nairobi court yesterday ordered that a case in which a German is accused of child trafficking, defilement and child pornography, proceeds on November 18.

When the case came up for directions before Milimani Senior Resident Magistrate Caroline Njagi the accused, Thomas Scheller, confirmed that he is ready for full hearing of the case.

The 71-year-old, Mombasa-based businessman has pleaded not guilty to seven counts of child trafficking, defilement and pornography.

Scheller who has been in remand since May 2020, is also facing another count of unlawfully being in Kenya.

Scheller was charged with three counts of defiling three minors, the youngest being 10, by sodomising them. He was also charged alternatively with committing an indecent act with a minor.

Sheller denied all the seven counts. It was his argument that he wanted to help the child and the mother agreed but anything else was a lie.

However, the state said the accused was a child molester and should not be released on bail because he was a foreigner without a valid permit to allow him to be in Kenya.

Scheller was arrested on May 5 after the police had trailed him for months, documents show.

It is alleged he escaped police in Kwale and fled to Kisumu where he committed the offences before he was arrested in Nairobi.

Police said he was arrested outside the German Embassy in the company of one of the victims.