Drama as goons ‘hijack’ funeral, take off with casket

Mourners at a funeral in Shipala village, Malava sub-county, Kakamega County, were treated to a rare, free-for-all drama when rowdy goons believed to be boda boda operators interrupted a burial, caused a fracas and took off with the casket.

What was meant to be a sombre, peaceful and decent send-off for the late Ndombi quickly spiraled out of control and turned into a sham after the unruly thugs stormed the funeral and scared off mourners, forcing them to scamper for safety.

Locals including members of the county assembly were left a puzzled lot.

The deceased, a boda boda operator, met his death along the Malava-Kakamega road near Malava forest. He was allegedly attacked by armed robbers who killed him in the dead of night, dumped his body in a thicket and stole his motorbike.

Johnson Chekwendo, who attended the funeral, explained that the burial ceremony was going smoothly when a group of over 100 riotous boda boda operators marched into the compound, and ordered the pastor presiding over the requiem service to stop--immediately.

“Just when the pastor launched into a punchy sermon, encouraging the family to take heart, drama unfolded. A bunch of rowdy goons, chanting war cries, stormed the compound, took the casket and run away with it,” Chekwendo said.

He added that for close to an hour, the thugs ran around neighbouring villages with the body as they sang and performed traditional rituals. “The scared man of God had to take off for fear of being victimised by the mob,” Chekwendo added.

Chaos, however, erupted between some members of the bereaved family and the goons, turning the incident even uglier. Nobody seems to know the exact motive of the disgraceful act. However, it is believed some of them could have participated in the killing the deceased, and had engaged in the weird ritual to ‘cleanse’ themselves, lest they were haunted by his ‘ghosts’.

After almost an hour, the goons returned the body, and insisted on burying it by themselves. Administration officers observed that though the village is in an area where locals are notorious for practicing outdated traditions and cultures, this incident was the first of it’s kind.

Keila Mufwoya, the area chief, confirmed that they are investigating the matter and promised to get to the bottom of it.