A former employee of the Kiwayi Safari Village in Kenya has appeared in court in connection with the tourist kidnapping that took place last week.

Handy man Ali Babitu Kololo, 25, appeared in court on Monday in connection with the murder of David Tebbutt who was shot dead and the kidnapping of his wife Judith, on September 11th

Kololo has told a court that he was forced to co-operate with the gang at gunpoint.

A team of UK police officers are helping local authorities in Kenya with their investigations.

According to latest reports, Mrs Tebbutt, 56, has been on a hunger strike whilst being held near Haredhere, a pirate base nearly 200 miles along the coast from the Somali capital of Mogadishu.

It is thought that a gang raided the couple’s beach cottage in the early hours of Sunday morning after a tip off that a Western couple were on the isolated island resort.

The Kiwayu resort, where the incident took place, is popular with celebrities such as Tracy Emin and Imelda Staunton, located just 28 miles or 45 km from the Somali border.

Over 160,000 British visitors arrived in Kenya last year, according to figures from the Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO). The FCO advises against all but essential travel to within 30km of the Somali border.