Fear as ‘murdered’ teenager reappears after five days

By ANTONY GITONGA

KENYA: Fear has gripped Naivasha residents after a 17-year-old boy suspected to have been murdered by his older brother and his body hidden in a house for five days reappeared.

Police and members of the public were left in shock after the teenager arrived at his home in Kayole Estate hours after his mother had confirmed that the decomposing body was his.

On Wednesday, area residents found a decaying body that had been partially burnt lying in a trench in the estate.

Investigations led residents and police officers to a nearby house where blood stains were found and the body immediately identified as that of the missing teenager.

Following the move, police arrested his elder brother and their parents as they tried to establish the identity of the body.

A neighbour, Joseph Mahiga, said the teenager arrived at the murder scene hours after police had collected the body and taken it to Naivasha District Hospital mortuary.

In shock

“We were left in shock and some of us fled the scene after the teenager arrived and asked what was going on,” he said.

Naivasha OCPD Charles Kortok confirmed the incident, saying the four were in custody and would be arraigned in court to face murder charges.

He said it was difficult to identify the body as its hands and face had been badly burnt.

“The four shall be arraigned in court charged with murder as we try to establish the identity of the body,” he said.

Meanwhile, a forest guard in Engineer Kinangop in Nyandarua County allegedly went berserk and demolished a house belonging to a local farmer.

Angry residents

The incident in Chuma village led to angry residents threatening to stage a demonstration against the guard.

“The officer was demanding a bribe from the farmer after he accused him of constructing his house using forest products. But this was a lie,” said a witness.

Nyandarua South OCPD Simon Munyao, however, dismissed the allegations, saying the farmer had been arrested while in possession of 10 cedar posts from Aberdare Forest.

“The suspect was found with the posts on his farm and arrested and is seeking sympathy by alleging that his house was demolished, which is a lie,” said the police boss.