Nakuru family in pain after teen is defiled and brutally killed

Described by family and neighbours as intelligent and full of life, 16-year-old Beauty Njoki would today be in school attending classes and playing with her friends as usual.

However, the life of the Form Two student at St John secondary school in Bahati, Nakuru County, was on June 4, snuffed out, at a tender age, by unknown assailant(s) on her way to school.

Her killers waylaid the teenager as she headed to school at around 5:30am, defiled her, and killed her in cold blood, before dumping the body in a thicket.

Who killed her? Why? are some of the questions the teenager's family is grappling with.

Did she have to die at such a tender age?

Her family in Kabatini village in Bahati constituency, Nakuru County is now seeking justice following the gruesome murder, that has attracted fury from residents and local leaders.

Njoki's mother Ms Naom Wanjiku said on June 4, her daughter left for school at around 5:30 am, but never returned home that evening, only for her body to be discovered dumped in a thicket, a few meters from their home, a day after she went missing.

"She normally arrives home from school at around 6:30 in the evening, but that Tuesday, she failed to show up. I became worried but thought that she had passed by her aunt's place and maybe decided to spend the night after getting late."

"The following day I called one of her uncles and requested him to visit the aunt's place to confirm if she indeed slept there, however, she was not there.

"I also got information that she had not reported to school on Tuesday. Her friends in school said that her teachers were equally worried, as she had never missed classes before," the mother told the Nation.

Njoki’s mother proceeded to school to get full information on her whereabouts, and true to what Njoki's friends had told her, she learnt from teachers that her daughter did not report to school the previous day.

After receiving the news, the family made a missing person report at the Maili Saba police post.

The search

Njoki's mother together with neighbours started searching for her in the neighborhood, but failed to trace the teenager.

However, after about three hours, the search ended tragically, after Njoki’s body was found dumped in a thicket 150 meters from home.

“After combing the area, we first found her school shoes, a few meters away lay her school uniform and we knew she was just within. We discovered her body at a nearby thicket,” said the mother.

"We did not have a grudge with anyone in the village and l wonder why my daughter was attacked and her life taken away in such a cruel manner," added the mother.

Recalling the last time he saw Njoki alive, her uncle Joseph Waweru said, "She was a good girl; she was loved in the village. She was respectful. Unfortunately, we have lost her."

Police probe

Preliminary investigations by sleuths from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations and a medical examination revealed, that the teenager was defiled before she was murdered in cold blood.

A senior detective on Saturday revealed to the Nation that samples from the teen's remains were taken to the Government Chemist in Nairobi for analysis to help track down her killers.

"We are currently piecing together information to help arrest Njoki's killers. Samples from her body will help arrest those behind the heinous crime," disclosed the senior detective.

Nakuru North police boss Josephine Wambui revealed that police have arrested a man they believe to be the main suspect in the brutal murder.

She said that DCI detectives were, however, given seven days to complete investigations and subject the suspect to a DNA test.

Njoki's mother, who is yet to come to terms with the gruesome murder of her daughter was overwhelmed and could not speak much, when the Nation visited the home, only calling for speedy investigations for the family to get justice.

"She was not only my daughter but also a friend, I loved her very much. We will miss the jovial and respectful girl. We call on the police to apprehend the culprit(s) for the family to get justice," she pleaded.

As Njoki was laid to rest over the weekend, local leaders and the clergy also called for speedy investigations and arrest the perpetrator(s).

Bahati Member of Parliament Irene Njoki condemned the gruesome murder saying that a young life had been tragically cut short by an act of brutal violence.

"I condemn this barbaric act in the strongest terms possible. Such violence has no place in our society, and my office will continue to stand with Njoki's family to ensure that justice is served. Let us honor her memory by striving for a world where such tragedies have no place," she said.

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