Nurse, 38, found dead, her 23-year-old boyfriend unconscious

Wawira Nyaga was found dead on Thursday, June 10, 2021. [Standard]

A 38-year-old woman from Kivaruka Village in Embu West Sub-County was on Thursday found dead in her house.

Wawira Nyaga, who worked as a nurse at Kithimu Health Centre, was discovered dead at around noon, when she failed to receive her neighbours’ calls.

Wawira did not have any visible injuries, though police say preliminary investigations suggest she was strangled.

Her boyfriend, identified only as Munene, was found unconscious in a thicket not far from Wawira’s home.

Next to the 23-year-old man, were bottles of beer and an empty processed juice can.

“He had vomited, and was foaming at the mouth,” Charles Murimi, one of the people who found Munene in the thicket, told The Standard.

Another witness, Marion Mukami, said they reached Munene’s girlfriend, Wawira, on phone upon realising he needed immediate medical attention.

“Her phone was ringing, but she wasn’t picking up. That’s when some of the neighbours went to her house, and discovered her door had been locked from the inside,” said Mukami.

Upon peeping through Wawira’s window, they saw her lying on the bed.

“Several attempts to wake her up were unsuccessful, prompting the neighbours to break down her door,” said Mukami.

“One of us, with a medical background, confirmed that Wawira had already died,” she added.

Wawira Nyaga was a nurse at Kithimu Health Centre in Embu County. [Standard]

The informant told The Standard that the last time Wawira and Munene were spotted in public was on Wednesday, June 9 at 3pm, when they had visited a bar owned by the nurse.

The two are said to have dated for more than a year.

“The young man did not have a job that we know of, and was mostly depending on Wawira for upkeep,” a neighbour privy to the couple’s relationship told The Standard.

Wawira was previously married, though she separated from her husband a few years ago. The former couple have a 10-year-old daughter.

The deceased was taken to Embu Level 5 Hospital morgue pending postmortem.

Faith Wambeti, a Nyumba Kumi Initiative official, urged police to conduct in-depth investigations into Wawira’s death.

“She was a very hard-working nurse-cum-businesswoman. She will be missed greatly in the community,” said Wambeti.

Embu West Sub-County Deputy Police Commander Samuel Gitau told The Standard Wawira’s boyfriend, Munene, is undergoing treatment at a local hospital, and will be interrogated upon being discharged.

“For now, we are treating him as the key suspect in Wawira’s death,” said Gitau.