Close shave for Bomet night runner as villagers nab him in the act

Against the backdrop of government rejecting bid to have their nocturnal antics recognised as legitimate recreational activities by the sports ministry, a night runner was last Wednesday caught in the act nude by villagers in Borabu area, Bomet County.

The 38-year-old man, only identified as Nyangure, survived death by a whisker after locals unleashed terror on him, accusing him of engaging in an ungodly activity closely associated with witchcraft.

Nyangure, who was busted hurling pebbles on villagers’ roofs and running around naked as he whistled in the dead of the night, fell into a trap laid by furious locals who had been complaining of his scary antics at night.

“The naughty night runner is reported to have been causing a lot of inconveniences in the village with his hair-raising antics. According to the villagers, the man would randomly visit homes, and then throw small stones or sand on their roofs.

Angry men would dash out armed, only to find no one,” says Moses Kirui, a local, adding that he in some instances he would go to a home and start whistling whilst running around the houses, only to vanish when the home owner woke up.

Kirui says so incensed were the locals that they held a crisis meeting to deliberate on how to stop the oddity that had almost become a custom. Unfortunately, after it was agreed that men keep vigil every night, the night runner never showed up, leading suspicion that he might have been working in cahoots with some of them.

A week later after they gave up on nabbing him, he showed up with his usual antics; knocking on doors, throwing stones on roofs, or rattling corrugated iron sheet roofs with a stick before taking off.

It didn’t take long before a brave local tiptoed out of his house and pounced on him in his element before raising alarm.

Scaring thieves away

“Attempts to explain himself, claiming that running around naked was his hobby and that he was also offering security by scaring away potential thieves fell on deaf ears. Angry locals attacked him, even as he pleaded for mercy, arguing that he was not stealing but only having fun running around naked,” said Kirui.

The night runner was traced to a village kilometres away where he had lied to his wife that he had gone to ‘stretch (read exercise)’ at a nearby football field, says Kirui.

The night runner, however, shocked locals when he confessed that he was not alone. He claimed they work in groups with three of his other colleagues who had gone to night run elsewhere.

“Some of my colleagues were also night running in villages across the ridge,” the night runner was quoted as having said, adding that their activities at times involve running with tamed wild animals for purposes of security and scaring unsuspecting villagers.

He was, however, released later, threatened with dire consequences and asked never to disturb people while asleep in the area again. He immediately took off and melted into the darkness. Locals can only hope he will stop disrupting their night and denying them sleep.