Candy Soita, daughter of former Kenyan Minister Soita Shitanda, has been charged with vehicular homicide in the U.S. after a crash that killed two soldiers. She faces two counts of vehicular homicide and one count of vehicular assault for the June 2, 2024, accident in Pierce County, Washington. Soita’s bail was set at $500,000 at her arraignment in Pierce County Superior Court, where she pleaded not guilty.
The crash occurred around 2:00 a.m. when Soita, driving east in the westbound lanes of state Route 512, collided with a vehicle driven by 29-year-old Charles T. Fairbairn. Both Fairbairn and his passenger, 22-year-old Wendell T. Cerio, died at the scene. Another 22-year-old soldier in Fairbairn’s vehicle survived.
Soita’s 19-month-old daughter, who was in her car, survived with a fractured hand. Both were taken to medical facilities for treatment.
Authorities detected alcohol on Soita’s breath, and a preliminary breath test showed her blood alcohol concentration was 0.097, above the legal limit of 0.08. The case remains under investigation.
