Detectives arrest farm-hand suspected to have murdered his boss

Mr Kelvin Matindo who is suspected have murdered his boss Ms Beatrice Waithira Kariuki at a farm in Kibiko, Ngong.

Photo credit: Stanley Ngotho I Nation Media Group

Detectives are holding a farmhand suspected of killing his boss at her farm in Kibiko, Ngong, Kajiado County.

Kelvin Matindo, 38, allegedly murdered Beatrice Waithira Kariuki, 58, on September 19.

Ms Kariuki, who lived in Nairobi with her family, was said to have visited the family’s farm but did not return home.

Mr Matindo vanished from the farm after allegedly committing the murder, taking Ms Kariuki’s mobile phone with him.

Detectives had been tracking the suspect before arresting him on October 9 in the Nairobi city centre, said Kajiado North DCI boss David Cheriot.

"The suspect discarded the victim’s SIM card and began using his line on the handset. First, we tracked him to his rural home in Hamisi sub-county, Vihiga County," Mr Cheriot said.

He added: "He switched off the phone only to resurface [in Nairobi]. We swung into action and arrested him. He is in our custody waiting to be arraigned on October 11, 2022 for murder."

A postmortem report said Ms Kariuki was strangled. She was buried on September 28 at the Lang'ata cemetery.

Her husband, Ken Kariuki, identified the suspect at the Ngong Police Station.

He told the Nation that his wife had left their Nairobi home that morning to her workplace before proceeding to their home in Kibiko. She had visited the farm alone before, he added.

"All was well until 3.53pm, when I received a text message from my wife saying, ‘I am dying’. Her phone went off immediately before it was switched on a few minutes later. When I called the farmhand, he informed me that my wife had not arrived at the farm," he said.

He said he suspected something was amiss and alerted neighbours in Kibiko. They started searching for Ms Kariuki on the farm.

Her car was parked next to the family’s incomplete bungalow. They found her body in a room where the farmhand lived.

"We found her with a rope on her neck that was tied to the bed. Her legs and arms were also tied with a rope. It was a horrifying scene," said a neighbour.