Head of Presidential Special Projects and Creative Economy Dennis Itumbi has reignited one of the most controversial political claims in recent Kenyan history — that a 2019 plot to assassinate then–Deputy President William Ruto was real.
Speaking on the Iko Nini podcast on Wednesday, October 9, 2025, Itumbi asserted that he still possesses video footage and court documents proving the alleged assassination plan was not a fabrication.
“It is absolutely factual. I have videos. I stood in court. The then [police] boss opposed. Those matters are in court, and the file is in court. In fact, there’s an order for me not to play it, which exists up to today,”
— Dennis Itumbi on Iko Nini Podcast
Legal Gag Order
Itumbi said the matter remains under legal restriction, barring him from publicly releasing the video evidence. However, he maintained that all his assertions were grounded in verifiable facts, dismissing earlier reports that the plot was a political hoax.
He further revealed that the case had a former Principal Secretary (PS) listed as the complainant — who, according to Itumbi, later declined to testify when the matter was brought before the court.
“We went through the court process. The former PS was a complainant when we went to court. We told him to come and testify on what he was complaining about… He refused. He never showed up,” Itumbi stated.
The La Mada Hotel Meeting
Itumbi revisited the events of the alleged meeting at La Mada Hotel, located near the National Intelligence Service (NIS) headquarters in Nairobi — the same venue that sparked the 2019 political storm after claims surfaced of a high-level plot to eliminate Ruto.
“Yes, the meeting happened at La Mada Hotel, in the basement. The PS called it, and all the then CSs and PSs were invited. I even have the order of how they got in because I saw it,” he said.
He claimed that among those who attended were two former Cabinet Secretaries, one of whom excused himself for a flight to Rwanda, while another left midway through the meeting.
“What We Did to Saitoti”
In what he described as the most chilling moment of the alleged meeting, Itumbi claimed the PS at the center of the controversy made a disturbing statement, referencing the late Professor George Saitoti, the former Internal Security Minister who died in a 2012 helicopter crash.
“The PS stood in that meeting and said, ‘Don’t worry about this campaign of the Deputy President becoming President. We’ll do everything possible, including what we did to Saitoti.’ He said it. I said it in court,” Itumbi claimed.
Court Drama and Missing Testimonies
According to Itumbi, when the case eventually reached court, the PS allegedly used his influence to have his name removed from the case file. However, Itumbi said he had retained original signed documents from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) showing the PS as the complainant.
“He ran away. In fact, he used his power to remove his name — only that I had the originals. So we tabled them in court,” he added.
A Controversy That Won’t Fade
Itumbi’s remarks have reopened debate over a case that once dominated national headlines and nearly fractured the Jubilee administration. In 2021, he was acquitted in a criminal case relating to the circulation of a “fake assassination letter” that referenced the same alleged plot.
While his claims continue to divide opinion, Itumbi insists he was never lying — and that one day, “the full truth will come out.”
The Office of the President and the Ministry of Interior had not issued any statement on Itumbi’s latest claims by the time of publication.
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