How Nakuru fisherman's disappearance sparked outcry across the country

Brian Odhiambo disappeared after he was arrested by six KWS rangers, who were supposed to present him to a police station to be charged for trespassing in the park and illegal fishing. [FILE]

On January 18, 2025, Brian Odhiambo, 31, a fisherman, disappeared at around 11 a.m after he made his way into Lake Nakuru National Park to do illegal fishing.

Twelve months later, his name still lingers in the minds of Nakuru residents and Kenyans who have joined hands, endured pain, and faced danger in the fight for his justice.

What started as a missing person’s report for the then unknown Nakuru fisherman turned into a huge talk of the town, causing mayhem and attracting both national and international attention.

Odhiambo disappeared after he was arrested by six Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) rangers, who were supposed to present him to a police station to be charged for trespassing in the park and illegal fishing.

However, to date, he has never been found, with his mother, Elizabeth Auma, and wife Alvy Okello coming to terms with the fact that he might have died.

Since her first report on January 19 at Bondeni Police Station, Auma has been to hospitals, police stations, the court, the streets, mortuaries, and even to the national park to search for her son.

The single mother of six children has also been briefly arrested, teargassed, harassed, and testified on her son’s disappearance in court.

“I saw the rangers take away my son. They dragged and assaulted him as I pleaded for them to stop. Since then, I have not seen my son. I want his body so I can bury him,” said Auma.

She still carries with her a portrait of her son, bravely demanding justice.

Detectives believe that the rangers killed Odhiambo and secretly buried his body within the park. They claim they have credible intelligence on where he might have been buried.

A series of protests ensued as Odhiambo’s relatives, neighbours, and Nakuru residents took to the streets and protested outside the park.

Eliud Ochieng, 23, one of the protestors, was shot in his right leg on January 21.

He said he was forced to be in the hospital for three months, and he solely depends on his wife, who does hard labour to provide for the family.

“I no longer walk, and I cannot work. I use crutches. My leg is yet to heal despite the fact that locking plates were removed in April. I will continue fighting for justice,” he said.

Ochieng said he had no medicine and was reduced to a pauper because of doing the right thing.

Residents of Flamingo Ward in Nakuru City demonstrating on January 20, 2025, outside Lake Nakuru National Park, demanding justice for 31-year-old Brian Odhiambo. [File, Standard]

The case moved to court and on January 24, Justice Julius Nangea ordered the KWS to produce Odhiambo in court, with mystery deepening on what might have happened to him.

Four days later, the authorities denied knowing Odhiambo and his whereabouts.

Samuel Ngeiywa, then Superintendent of Police at DCI Nakuru East said they were investigating Odhiambo’s abduction because he was not in their custody.

On January 30, then Assistant Director of the National Park David Oyugi, confirmed that they had arrested a suspect who escaped from their custody before he could be processed.

Oyugi was unable to explain why they did not report the escape, who the suspect was and why he escaped in their custody at their park.

Despite the controversy, on February 6, the court ruled that there was insufficient evidence to prove that Odhiambo was in the custody of KWS or DCI.

The ruling saw Auma and her friends start a protest from the court to the streets. For over three days, the residents and the family engaged the police and rangers in a running battle outside the park.

“Who will protect me? Who will fight for me and my son? They took him. I saw it. I want him back,” wailed Auma during one of the protests outside the court.

The Law Society of Kenya stepped in with Aston Muchela, Rift Valley LSK Chair, saying the judiciary, being the last line of defence for Kenyans seeking justice, took the matter lightly.

Pressure mounted on the authorities, with activists from Vocal Africa, Independent Medico-Legal Unit, and Kenya Human Rights Commission pointing fingers at both the county and national government for remaining quiet.

Elizabeth Auma, mother of Brian Odhiambo, breaks down crying for justice at Nakuru Law Courts on February 6, 2025. [File, Standard]

On March 15, Odhiambo’s mother Auma, his wife Okello and his brother Carlos Otieno were briefly arrested following protests outside the park.

Okello said the police accused them of leading an illegal protest, a crime punishable by detention or a fine.

“The police drove us in their Land Cruiser for minutes and threatened to take us to court. We received several calls from renowned people, including our local MP and the police released us and warned us never to protest again,” she said.

Pressure mounted on KWS, and after two days, the family, accompanied by the police, human rights groups, and residents, were reluctantly allowed access into the park to search for Odhiambo after several requests were denied.

The group was let into the park by an informer. They found nine shallow holes, six were fresh, and he claimed that one of them was where Odhiambo had been buried.

They got no bodies but police took soil samples and photographs.

On March 19, Auma confronted Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen during a function in Nakuru, and he promised to address her matter.

“As a government, we will not allow a situation where a Kenyan goes missing without being accounted for. We are here to ensure lives are protected. We will address this issue and KWS will be held responsible,” said Murkomen.

In May, the six rangers were arrested and charged with abduction with intent to confine.

The six include Senior Sergeant Francis Wachira, Alexander Lorogoi, Isaac Ochieng, Michael Wabukala, Evans Kimaiyo and Abdulrahman Ali.

In their testimonies between May 19 and September 1, Odhiambo’s family and friends pieced together the sequence of the event when he disappeared.

His brother Otieno, testified that Odhiambo was willing to trespass and do illegal fishing to provide for his wife and his two children.

“On that day when he disappeared, we had tea and he said he was going to fish. He used to do it because he had no work,” testified Otieno.

Carlos Otieno, brother of Brian Odhiambo, confronts anti-riot police officers outside the Nakuru Law Courts on February 6, 2025. [File, Standard]

A few minutes after Odhiambo left, Alex Maina, a casual labourer near the home, shouted, calling out Otieno, informing him that his brother had been arrested by KWS rangers.

Maina, who is serving a sentence for illegal fishing, testified that as he was slashing grass, Odhiambo passed by as he prepared to go fishing, but he was a troubled man.

“He was hesitant and fearful of being attacked by wild animals. A few minutes later I saw Odhiambo running as a KWS vehicle pursued him,” he testified.

He said the rangers alighted the vehicle, a Landcruiser and chased after Odhiambo, assaulted him with blows and kicks.

Agnes Achieng, a family friend, confirmed that four rangers who had covered their faces to hide their identity, assaulted Odhiambo a few metres from where she was doing her laundry.

“They chased him from the National Park. He jumped over the fence, and four of the six rangers who were at the scene followed him,” testified Achieng. “It was around 10 a.m.”

Auma said that when she heard noises, she got out of her house and saw the rangers from a distance, dragging her son. She cried for help but the same was ignored.

Three rangers testified and admitted that they arrested a man whose description matched that of Odhiambo.

They said they left the man in the hands of Ali and later learnt that the suspect escaped.

On September 1, Dennis Juma, a witness under protection, testified that the he believed the rangers killed Odhiambo, whom he saw lying unconscious inside their Land Cruiser.

Frustration mounted in the case as family lawyers and the prosecution accused the KWS of interfering with the proceedings.

A day later, Senior Principal Magistrate Kipkurui Kibelion summoned the Assistant Director of Lake Nakuru National Park and the in-charge Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS).

The two were supposed to explain why they were allegedly interfering with the case. Kibelion expressed his anger against the two for disobeying his orders issued on May 12 and May 19, 2025.

The court had ordered the two authorities to surrender any relevant documents required in the abduction case without failure.

Friends and relatives of Brian Odhiambo at the Nakuru Law Courts on March 13, 2025. [File, Standard]

The case created so much bad blood between residents of Nakuru and KWS to the point that on September 27, the residents were denied entry into the park during Free Park entries for all National parks in Kenya.

The KWS said the same was due to suspicions that Odhiambo’s family and human rights groups were planning a protest to interfere with the event.

On October 7, Senior Resident Magistrate Cynthia Muhoro authorized detectives to enter the park and search for Odhiambo’s body, alongside others.

“The detectives are granted permission to look for suspected grave sites within the park and immediately initiate an exhumation process conducted by the Chief Government Pathologist,” ordered Ms Muhoro.

The matter was so popular that it got the attention of the Senate who on November 7, planned a visit to the park and the Manyani area, where Odhiambo was taken.

The Senate Committee on National Security, Defence and Foreign Relations also wanted to visit areas where over 500 people were displaced by rising water levels in the lake, and to investigate illegal fishing within the park.

This followed a petition by Tom Mboya, a Nakuru activist, who wanted investigations of enforced disappearance, mass displacement and illegal fishing.

However, the planned visit by the Senate Committee on National Security, Defence and Foreign Relations flopped over security concerns.

Top county and national security team refused to accompany the committee, saying they had intelligence that the residents were planning to cause chaos.

The court was then forced to hold one of its sessions at the spot where Odhiambo was allegedly abducted.

On November 10, Chief Inspector Julius Muhuri, the Investigating Officer, testified and said investigations proved that the six rangers abducted Odhiambo with the intent to confine.

Family Lawyer Mogendi Abuya said that despite Odhiambo being a mere fisherman, if his family gets justice, then it would be a new wake for Kenya in the justice front.

Hussein Khalid, a human rights activist, said that Odhiambo’s case was not a private matter, but a test of the nation's moral and institutional resolve to uphold the sanctity of life, rule of law, and accountability in public service.

The court case will be mentioned on February 16, 2026.