Man found murdered hours after reporting brutal attack to police
Police officers collect body of Thomas Ltoduwa Lesamana, 30, whose body was found killed and dumped in a culvert in Maralal town.
On the night of Thursday, June 15, Thomas Ltoduwa Lesamana, 30, was full of life as he enjoyed drinks at a popular club in Maralal town, Samburu County.
A few minutes before 9pm, a group of people known to him confronted him, threatening to end his life. The group of three men reportedly left the club and waylaid him a few metres away in the western part of the town.
They attacked Mr Lesamana with blunt objects and he suffered serious head injuries that left him bleeding profusely.
In panic, he staggered to the Maralal Police Station, where he made a report regarding the incident.
He recorded the incident under OB Number 37/16/06/2022. Police officers reportedly advised him to seek treatment and obtain a medical form known as the 'P3'.
But at around 6am on Friday, June16, schoolchildren stumbled on Mr Lesamana's lifeless body in a culvert opposite Equity Bank’s Maralal branch.
"He (Mr Lesamana) had reported an assault case in our station and [it] was recorded in the Occurrence Book the previous night," Samburu County Police Commander David Wambua confirmed.
Police found several sachets of medical tablets in his pockets wrapped together with the OB note that he was given the previous night, indicating that he had sought medical attention as advised. Police say he had deep cuts in his head and neck.
Police did not record the names of the suspects in their OB report, though Mr Lesamana had told officers that he was familiar with them.
In the report, police indicated that Mr Lesamana was assaulted by "people known to him".
"We are wondering how police officers failed to record the names of suspects because my brother had identified them before his death," said David Lesamana, his elder brother.
He told the Nation that police also failed to protect his brother though he had reported that his life was in danger following the attack.
He mourned his brother as a humble and hardworking man and asked the police to find his killers.
"We are planning to conduct a postmortem to determine the exact cause of his death. We need answers on the events of his death. We urge the police to investigate and ascertain who the perpetrators are," he added.
The killing has sparked a public uproar as locals demand justice for the man’s family and urge the authorities to speed up their investigations.
The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) said officers were following crucial leads. "We have launched a probe into the death of Mr Thomas Lesamana who was found dead on Friday, June 17, 2022," the DCI said in a statement.
Despite reporting the suspects that he said were tracking him before he died, no arrests have been made.
Mr Wambua, the Samburu County police boss, said they were trying to establish the motive of the attack.
"Police together with investigators from the DCI are doing their work and the autopsy report will reveal the cause of death," Mr Wambua said on Monday.
The body of Mr Lesamana was lying at the Samburu County Referral Hospital mortuary.
