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PP RUEHDU RUEHJO RUEHMR
DE RUEHNR #3251/01 2251120
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 131120Z AUG 07
FM AMEMBASSY NAIROBI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 1671
INFO RUCNEAE/EAST AFRICAN ESC POSTS COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 NAIROBI 003251 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL KCRM CASC KE
SUBJECT: COURT RULES FATHER KAISER'S DEATH HOMICIDE 
 
REF: A. 00 NAIROBI 6976  B. 00 NAIROBI 06817 
 
     ¶C. 00 NAIROBI 6814  D. 99 NAIROBI 12167 
 
 ¶1. (SBU) Summary:  The recent finding by a Kenyan court that 
the death in 2000 of an American priest, Father John Kaiser, 
was a result of homicide has stirred renewed interest in the 
case due to his prominence as a human rights activist and 
vocal opponent of the former Kenyan government.  The Court 
Magistrate rejected the previous joint Kenyan/FBI conclusion 
that Father Kaiser committed suicide, saying the 
investigation was severely flawed, and recommended a new 
investigation be opened. The Embassy has no plans to publicly 
rebut the court,s finding but will continue to follow the 
case closely.   END SUMMARY. 
 
----------- 
Background 
----------- 
 
¶2.  (U) Outspoken Critic of Moi Government:  Fr. Kaiser was a 
Catholic priest who lived in Kenya for 36 years.  His 
assertions that the KANU government violently displaced 
farmers from the Rift Valley and incited tribal violence in 
1991-1992 led him to publicly call for the arrest of 
President Moi for crimes against humanity. 
 
¶3.  (U) In 1998, two females confided in Fr. Kaiser that they 
were impregnated under-aged by then-Internal Security 
Minister Julius Sunkuli.  Fr. Kaiser helped them file a civil 
lawsuit against Sunkuli, but the women later dropped the 
case.  Fr. Kaiser made many powerful enemies by this time, 
and in 1999, the Kenya Department of Immigration ordered his 
deportation for letting his residence permit lapse.  Only 
intervention by the Catholic Church and the U.S. Ambassador 
reversed his ordered deportation. 
 
¶4.  (U) Kaiser,s Death:  On the morning of August 24, 2000 
the body of Fr. Kaiser was found outside Naivasha about 40 
miles northwest of Nairobi.  Lying next to Fr. Kaiser was his 
shotgun. One shell had been fired. His pickup truck was about 
33 feet away in a ditch. Due to his prominence throughout 
Kenya as a human rights advocate and for challenging the Moi 
government, many people assumed that Fr. Kaiser,s death was 
a homicide, ordered by one of his enemies and likely a high 
government official. 
 
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FBI Investigation 
------------------ 
 
¶5.  (U) At the invitation of the Kenyan government, the U.S. 
Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) sent an investigative 
team to Kenya within three days of Kaiser,s death to work 
with the Criminal Investigation Director (CID).  The 
investigation began with an assumption by both the FBI and 
CID that a crime had been committed.  After an exhaustive 
investigation which included interviewing over 200 people and 
collecting extensive amounts of physical evidence, the FBI 
concluded though that Kaiser,s death was the result of a 
self-inflicted wound.  In its 81-page report, issued on April 
21, 2001, the FBI concluded that based on forensic evidence 
and prior history of mental health and erratic behavior, Fr. 
Kaiser committed suicide. 
 
-------------- 
Kaiser Inquest 
-------------- 
 
¶6.  (U) Unhappy with the FBI,s conclusion, Kenyan church 
leaders pressured the government to begin a new inquest into 
Fr. Kaiser,s death.  The inquest ran from August 2003 to 
¶2007.  On August 1, 2007, Naivasha Chief Magistrate Maureen 
Odero rejected the FBI,s report and ruled that Fr. Kaiser 
was killed.  She stated that the FBI investigation was 
&seriously flawed8 and &replete with loopholes and missing 
links and raise more questions than answers.8  The court 
also stated that no evidence was introduced to back the claim 
that the priest was mentally unstable. (Note: The U.S. 
Embassy sent a Diplomatic Note to the Ministry of Foreign 
Affairs in January to make available three FBI agents to 
provide testimony at the inquest.  The agents were never 
summoned to testify and the FBI was not afforded the 
opportunity to produce evidence. End Note.) 
 
¶7.  (U) Judge Odero recommended the government open a new 
investigation to determine who was behind Fr. Kaiser,s 
death.  According to Odero, the new investigation should 
focus on Francis Kantai, who served under Fr. Kaiser at the 
Lolgorian Parish and whose behavior leading up to the death 
seemed questionable to some.  The investigation also should 
focus on Kenya Wildlife Service game rangers who were 
involved in the disappearance of a rifle and magazine from 
Mara Serena armory around the time of Fr. Kaiser,s death. 
 
NAIROBI 00003251  002 OF 002 
 
 
At the same time, Odero cleared former Minister Sunkuli of 
any involvement, opining that Sunkuli would have targeted the 
women who brought forth the rape accusations or his political 
detractors rather than targeting Fr. Kaiser. As expected, the 
court,s finding was well received by many in the Catholic 
and local communities. 
 
¶8. (SBU) Despite the accusation that its investigation was 
flawed, LEGAT has no plans to pursue this matter further. 
Local media have said little on the magistrate,s ruling 
after the initial day of press, probably due to a number of 
other issues grabbing national headlines.  LEGAT believes 
that issuing a rebuttal would only bring more attention to 
the matter without changing minds.  The Public Affairs Office 
also has no plans to issue a public statement regarding the 
ruling for the same reason. 
 
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Comment 
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¶9. (SBU) Despite the reduced amount of press, we do expect 
the case to continue to receive attention by groups in the 
U.S. as well as in Kenya.  However, it seems unlikely that 
the government will open a new investigation seven years 
after death. According to recent local press report, there is 
a backlog of approximately one million cases pending in 
Kenyan courts.  We will continue to monitor the case and 
provide further updates as they arise. 
 
RANNEBERGER