Probe into killing of Form Four student will net culprit, DCI says
The late Esther Wanjiru who was buried at Nyondia in Kinangop on January 4, 2021.
What you need to know:
- The late Esther Wanjiru, 18, and Francis Kimani Kanyora were attacked while hiking on Sunday.
- Nakuru North DCI chief, Wesley Langat, says police are following clues in their search for the attacker.
Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) detectives are following clues that could lead to the killers of a Form Four student in Dundori forest, Nakuru County.
Esther Wanjiru, 18, a student at Wanyororo Secondary School, and her companion Francis Kimani Kanyora, a student at Kenya the Industrial Training Institute were attacked while hiking on Sunday. Kanyora was seriously injured in the attack.
Nakuru North DCI chief, Wesley Langat, said police are still looking for the attacker.
“Investigations into the murder are ongoing. We have made progress and will soon arrest the killer. The motive for the attack has not yet been established as nothing was taken from the two victims,” Mr Langat told the Saturday Nation.
What started as an exciting for the pair ended tragically. Kanyora and Wanjiru were at the 60-ft waterfall in the forest – a tourist attraction 20 kilometres from Nakuru town – when the attacker struck.
According to the 20-year-old college student, he and Wanjiru decided to visit the forest after a church service.
“She called and suggested that we take a walk in the forest. It would be my first time there. We were attacked by a man deep in the woods,” Kanyora said.
The student, who is recuperating at his home, said they spotted the as they were walking. He added that it never bothered them and that they minded their own business.
Violently attacked
Kanyora added that he and Wanjiru leisurely proceeded to the waterfall.
As they were relaxing about 20 minutes later, the man attacked them from behind. He said the man did not have a shirt and that almost half his body was covered in mud.
“I could not recognise his face because of the mud. I still do not know why the man attacked us,” Kanyora said.
He added that the attacker grabbed him by the neck as he attempted to defend himself.
The man, according to Kanyora, over overpowered him. The student says he lost his balance and fell into a ditch nearby.
As he lay on the ground, he heard Wanjiru screaming and pleading for help.
The man then pushed Wanjiru into the ditch. He jumped in and continued attacking Kanyora and Wanjiru with some blunt object.
“I had not regained my composure after falling in the ditch. The attacker hit my face and pushed me down the hill. I cannot really tell what happened next,” Kanyora said.
Screaming for help
He added that after regaining consciousness minutes later, he heard Wanjiru screaming and calling for help.
He crawled to where the girl was and found her half naked, he said.
“She was on the ground. Her shoes and pair of trousers were missing. I was confused,” Kanyora added.
He then called his elder brother who rushed to the forest with friends.
The group quickly made arrangements to rush the two to Nakuru Level Five Hospital. However, Wanjiru died before reaching hospital.
Kanyora said he and Wanjiru have been friends since 2019. According to Wanjiru’s mother, Mary Njeri, her daughter left home carrying books on Sunday, saying she was going for a group discussion in school.
Njeri said her husband later received a phone call from an unknown number informing him that Wanjiru had been attacked and left to die in the forest.
“We quickly went to the forest and found our daughter in pain. Wanjiru said her hip bones had been crushed and that she could not walk,” Njeri said.
Massive loss of blood
She added that her fourth born did not make it to hospital.
“I watched my daughter take her last breath,” she said.
Friends and family members have asked police to conduct speedy investigations and bring the girl’s killer to book.
“She was the only child I was staying with as her elder siblings are not around. Wanjiru’s younger sister is in boarding school. Breaking the news of her death to my other children was difficult. I just want justice,” a distraught Njeri said.
A post-mortem conducted at Nakuru Level Five Hospital mortuary by government pathologist Titus Ngulungu, showed that Wanjiru suffered internal bleeding.
Dr Ngulungu’s report indicates that the 18-year-old suffered trauma to the abdomen, leading to massive loss of blood.
As the student was buried at their home in Nyondia,Nyandarua county, yesterday, Njeri, other family members and area residents demanded justice, asking police to ensure the killer is arrested.
Police have also asked people living near the expansive forest to report any suspicious individuals or activities.
“This is the first such incident reported in the area. We will increase our patrols in and near the forest as it is popular with local and international tourists,” Mr Langat said.