Detectives are hunting Captain Martyne Luther Lunani after the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) publicly declared that a letter used to extend his tenure as Director of Aircraft Accident Investigation was forged.
The DCI said on November 26, via social media posts, that forensic analysis confirmed the document that purported to give Lunani a three-year renewal did not originate from the office of the then Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Kipchumba Murkomen. The letter is now the subject of a criminal probe that has already led to an arrest, with the DCI asking the public to help in the apprehension of Lunani whose ‘whereabouts are not known’.
The detectives said they had detained a senior engineer alleged to have authored or facilitated the bogus renewal.
Richard Kirui Bongei, a Principal Engineer at the Ministry of Housing, was apprehended in Athi River following investigations into a complaint filed by the Transport Department regarding a falsified “Renewal of Local Agreement Terms” letter dated May 6, 2024.
The same document was later submitted to the Public Service Commission (PSC).
Who is Martyne Lunani and how did this start?
Captain Martyne Lunani has for years been the face of Kenya’s aircraft accident investigations. Records and public reports show he entered public service in 2010 as an investigator and was promoted to Director of the Air Accident Investigation Department in July 2012.
Over the years he led inquiries into several incidents, but his tenure has also been dogged by questions about his conduct and procurement practices. An exposé in 2020 questioned certain expense claims and administrative practices under his watch.
The present controversy over his mandate began in 2024 when Lunani sought renewal of his contract. The PSC says it received a letter dated 6 May 2024 seeking approval for a three-year extension; ministry records later showed a separate letter dated 25 November 2024 with the same intent.
The ministry, however, declined to process the renewal, and a wider dispute followed. On 30 April 2025 the Employment and Labour Relations Court found that the ministry had acted unlawfully when it failed to refer Lunani’s renewal to the PSC and ordered remedies including reinstatement and arrears dating from 1 July 2024.
The judgment delivered by Justice Hellen Wasilwa stressed that the PSC, not the ministry, is the constitutionally mandated agency to make or re-engage such appointments.
The PSC–Ministry standoff and court rulings
The court ruling set up a constitutional and administrative clash. The PSC says it convened on 28 May 2025 and resolved to reappoint Lunani for three years; it then wrote to the Transport principal secretary on 9 June 2025 directing immediate issuance of a contract.
The Ministry of Roads and Transport, however, maintained it had lawfully declined renewal and has since appealed the Employment Court judgment to the Court of Appeal, arguing budgetary and procedural constraints. That tug-of-war has left Lunani’s position legally unsettled and has fueled public scrutiny over who holds the power to appoint or renew contract officers in sensitive investigative roles.
Why former CS Kipchumba Murkomen refused to reappoint Lunani
Then-Cabinet Secretary (now Interior CS) Kipchumba Murkomen publicly disowned the renewal letter and denied authoring the document that purported to bear his signature. Murkomen said the letter used an incorrect letterhead (from the Department of Housing) and even mis-stated the decorational letters after his name and state commendations (EGH, instead of EBS). These anomalies, he said, pointed to forgery.
He further urged investigative agencies to probe Lunani, citing past questions about the director’s performance and alleged irregularities. The PSC also says it treated the suspect renewal letter as a criminal matter but did not act on it.
The Lunani reappointment saga shines spotlight on a fault line in Kenya’s public service: the balance between ministerial discretion and the PSC’s constitutional mandate. If Ministries bypass PSC processes or if forged documents are used to short-circuit appointment rules, the result is legal uncertainty, delayed appointments, and potential contempt proceedings as courts enforce their orders.
The Employment Court had awarded KES 3 million in damages to Lunani and insisted that the PSC reengage him, illustrating the financial and governance costs of such disputes; the ministry’s appeal underscores how unresolved legal arguments can freeze critical positions for months. Observers warn that this uncertainty hampers the smooth running of technical agencies and could weaken public confidence in appointments for sensitive safety roles. (Semayote)
Why this matters now on Air safety and investigations
Safety still tops IATA’s agenda with delayed or unfinalized investigations by ICAO members being blamed for slow reforms and avoidable air accidents.
Recent aviation incidents that required robust, independent investigations to establish causes and lessons in Kenya include a light aircraft crash in Nairobi in August 2025, killing six people; in late October 2025 a Mombasa Air Safari commuter flight went down near Diani, killing tourists and crew. Each crash demands forensic, timely and credible investigations to prevent repeat tragedies — a task made harder if the independence, leadership and integrity of the accident-investigation body are in dispute.
Critics warn that any perception of impropriety in the department’s leadership could erode public trust in inquiry findings and delay safety reforms.
Key developments to follow include the outcome of the criminal probe into the forged renewal letter and any charges or court appearances against suspects; the Court of Appeal’s treatment of the Employment Court judgment; and whether the PSC’s reappointment maneuver will be operationalised or blocked on budgetary or procedural grounds. Equally important will be whether Parliament or the Auditor-General open inquiries into AAID procurement and governance, and whether accident investigations going forward are perceived as independent and technically credible.
For now, detectives’ search for the origins and authors of the renewal letter — and the legal fights that followed — have placed Kenya’s aircraft accident investigations under an uncomfortable spotlight. That scrutiny comes when transparency and trust in investigatory institutions are most needed to keep the skies safe.
