Administration Police boss killed in Baragoi buried one year later

Administration Police officers during the burial of late Chief Inspector Daniel Mulyungi in Kitui County at the weekend. [Photo: Philip Muasya/Standard]

By Philip Muasya

Kitui, Kenya: On learning of his death in a bandit attack in Suguta Valley in Samburu County last year, the family of Daniel Musili Mulyungi, a chief inspector of Administration Police (AP), prepared a grave to bury his body.

A Few days to the scheduled burial, Mulyungi’s family learnt that the body that had been identified as his was not, and so the funeral was postponed.

After waiting for months, they reluctantly filled the grave then began the agonising wait.

It took one year for his remains to be found deep in the sun-scorched Suguta Valley, where 42 police officers were felled by cattle rustlers on November 10, 2012, in an attack that left the Government reeling in shame.

Mr Mulyungi was the Administration Police Commander for Samburu North District (Baragoi) and was part of a combined team of AP, General Service Unit, Rapid Response Unit, Anti-Stock Theft Unit and regular police officers that descended on the harsh and dangerous valley to recover over 450 head of cattle stolen from the Samburu community by suspected Turkana raiders.

Re-dig grave

He was leading the AP command. Unknown to the security officers, the heavily-armed Turkana raiders had laid an ambush at strategic points of the expansive valley.

When gunshots died, more than 40 police officers lay dead and several others maimed in the botched livestock recovery mission.

Mulyungi was one of them. His family finally buried him in Mboru, Mwingi Central District in Kitui County, at the weekend. The ceremony was attended by senior Administration Police officers led by Mwingi Central AP Commander Hussein Ali.

His remains, recovered early this month, were identified after matching his DNA with that of his brother and son. When they learnt that his remains had been positively identified, the family had to re-dig the grave to bury him.

“It has been a painful and winding wait but we are happy to be able to accord him a decent burial,” said Philip Mulyungi, his brother, who is an assistant chief.

His wife, Florence Mwende, said she had left everything to God. “God saw it fit that my husband should die in such circumstances. We draw strength from His encouragement,” she said during the burial that was interrupted by a heavy downpour.

Mulyungi was given a 21-gun salute send off, with colleagues describing him as an exemplary officer.