Bodies of five foreign nationals found floating on Lake Turkana identified

Some of the fishing boats on the shores of Lake Turkana. [File, Standard]

The bodies of five foreigners found floating on Lake Turkana have been identified.

The deceased all of Eritrean nationality have been identified as Deseay Aybu, Shishay Aybu, Mhret Ferezghi, Merkeb Gebrensia, and Robel Tsegay.

Their bodies were found floating on the shores of Lake Turkana with preliminary reports indicating they could be immigrants.

The bodies have so far been transported to Nairobi by relatives after a postmortem was conducted by pathologists at Lodwar Referral Hospital.

In a turn of events, police have launched a search mission to find the boat that capsized with the deceased amid reports that there could be more bodies.

Turkana North Sub-County Police Commander Jacob Kinyanjui said investigations to establish the circumstances under which the foreigners met their deaths have commenced.

Initially, Kinyanjui said the police were looking into possible drowning or murder in their investigations.

"We are yet to find any survivors from the capsised boat and the exact number of individuals on board at the time of the accident," he said.

He said search and rescue efforts are ongoing, with the hope of finding any possible survivors or additional victims with uncertainty surrounding the boat's destination adding complexity to the investigation.

A source said the relatives of the deceased had refused to disclose where their kin were headed but police are pressing hard to get the information and possible leads.

The incident highlights the gravity of the situation of illegal immigrants crossing over to the country through the Turkana borders.

The police boss said some 45 Ethiopian immigrants were recently arrested as they attempted to get into the country in Turkana North.

Kinyanjui said most of the foreigners could not explain where they were headed and their mission.