Nyeri Senior principal magistrate Pauline Omungala was Sunday summoned by Athi River police officers investigating the murder of Robert Chesang.
The magistrate, whose lawyer husband was shot dead in their Lukenya home on February 17, has been arrested is being held in connection with the murder.
The magistrate and three other suspects, who are already in custody, will be presented in court Monday.
The police will be seeking court orders to continue detaining them as investigations continue.
Omungala’s arrest brings the number of suspects being questioned to five. All are in custody.
The other three suspects in custody are two serving police officers and a retired officer.
The magistrate’s arrest follows days of investigations into Chesang’s killing in Lukenya, Machakos County. The lawyer was killed by gunmen who raided his house at Lukenya in broad daylight on February 17.
Investigators have established that the suspect offered the killers Sh181,000 to execute Chesang.
“One officer has confessed he pulled the trigger. They were sent by one of the suspects in custody to eliminate Chesang after being duped that he was a criminal,” said the officer who requested anonymity.
“The motive was domestic violence between the deceased and his arrested wife, occasioned by fighting for property and leading to their cases appearing before courts. The wife felt that being a magistrate, she was being embarrassed by the cases being handled in courts,” a senior police officer investigating the murder said.
Several documents seen by Nairobi News showed that Chesang had a troubled marriage with his wife Maisy Pauline Omungala Chesang.