Widow of nursing official recounts ordeal of identifying his body
Brossy Makimtigwa Ongeri, widow of Ferdinand Ongeri, a nurse whose body was found dumped in the Kimondi forest in Nandi County three years ago, breaks down in an Eldoret court as she recounted how she learned about the brutal murder of her husband. Hearing of the murder case is going on before the High Court in Eldoret.
What you need to know:
- Mr Ongeri, then 40, was the Kenya National Union of Nurses (Knun) Kisumu branch deputy chairman when he died
- He was reported missing on July 24, 2019 from his work station after successfully negotiating a promotion deal for nurses with officials from Kisumu County’s health department
The widow of Ferdinand Ongeri, a nurse whose body was found dumped in the Kimondi forest in Nandi County three years ago, broke down in an Eldoret court as she recounted how she learned about his murder.
Brossy Makimtigwa Ongeri, a Ugandan citizen and also a nurse by profession, was overwhelmed by emotions, prompting the High Court clerk to calm her down before allowing her to proceed with her testimony.
Mr Ongeri, 40, was the Kenya National Union of Nurses (Knun) Kisumu branch deputy chairman when he died.
Ms Makimtigwa told Justice Reuben Nyakundi that she received the shocking news of the death of her husband, then based at the Riat dispensary in Kisumu County, moments after her efforts to reach him on his two mobile phones failed.
“I tried to call him several times from our Nyamira County home, but he was not picking up my calls,” a sobbing Ms Ongeri testified.
“One of the phones was just ringing while the other had been switched off, something which I had never experienced since we got married more than seven years ago.”
Herbalist from Uganda
The widow was testifying in a case where Mawanda Asma, an herbalist from Uganda, has denied killing Mr Ongeri.
He is charged with murdering Mr Ongeri between July 24 and July 27, 2019 in the Kimondi forest, Nandi County.
Mr Ongeri was reported missing on July 24, 2019 from his work station after successfully negotiating a promotion deal for nurses with officials from Kisumu County’s health department.
Nurses in Kisumu protesting the murder of Ferdinand Ongeri, who was the Kenya National Union of Nurses (Knun) Kisumu branch deputy chairman at the time of his death.
A herdsman found his decomposed body in the Kimondi forest after a fruitless search by his colleagues, friends and family.
Ms Makimtigwa said he was found naked, his throat slit, the neck broken, and bruises all over his body. There was a cut on his mouth that suggested he had been tortured, she said.
“On the fateful day, someone had updated information that a male naked body had been found in the forest and taken to the Kapsabet mortuary, and when I went there with my mother-in-law and other family members, we identified my husband’s body,” she said.
Isabel Ongeri Ondiek, a retired nurse and Mr Ongeri’s mother, recalled her last moments with her son, saying she had spoken with him by phone and he had promised to visit her the following week.
“My son was in high spirits and jovial when I talked to him on the phone a week before he was reported missing. Little did I know it was my last conversation with him,” Ms Ondiek said.
The hearing continues.
