Family recounts events leading up to KDF soldier’s killing

As the rest of the world made merry on Christmas day, Ms Ann Njoki was wailing in agony after her husband, Lucas Wema Muli, was stoned to death barely 300 metres from their city home in Queen’s Court, Utawala.

Muli’s younger brother, Mr Francis Mwendwa, narrowly escaped death, but was left with serious injuries.

 Muli, a soldier whose unit is based in Thika but who had been seconded to Lanet in Nakuru, spent Christmas morning with his family. He and his eight-year-old daughter, Tatiana Syombua, slaughtered a chicken for lunch, which would be Muli’s last meal.

Soon after lunch, the family left for Afro Sayari, an entertainment spot off the Eastern Bypass for a swim and generally to have fun.

His wife recalled him showering her with compliments on account of a dress he had bought her as a Christmas present.

“For the past 10 years, I have never seen you look so stunning,” he reportedly told his wife.

At Afro Sayari they had fun watching their daughter swim.

Later, at around 5.30pm, young Syombua wanted some chips. So they opted to go to Fahari Hotel,  a walking distance from their home. 

They asked Muli’s brother, Mwendwa, to join them with his family. Besides his two sons and his wife, Mr Mwendwa’s workmate, Mr Alex Odera, tugged along.

Terrible fight

Earlier in the day, while on their way to Afro Sayari, Muli had promised to buy the guards next door something for Christmas on his return.

So they agreed to let their wives and children proceed to Muli’s place, then the three men would link up with the guards for some roast meat. 

As Muli and his brother were sorting out the bill, Mwendwa’s teenage son, Dalton, remained behind with the men.

“We could see them behind us as we took the last turn to our home,” Ms Njoki told the Nation.

“Mwendwa’s wife branched off to get her youngest child some pampers. I walked ahead and opened the gate, leaving it ajar. Soon, my sister-in-law came in with the baby.”

They first checked on Muli’s sister, identified as Mama Ann, who lives in the same compound, before proceeding to the main house. They had barely sat down when Mr Odera and young Mwendwa rushed in, panting.

“There is a terrible fight going on back there. Uncle Muli and dad are being beaten up by a mob,” they said.

Ms Njoki rushed back and was stumped to see her brother-in-law’s face covered with blood.  She rushed to her husband’s side and lifted his arms. They fell back limply, signalling the worst.

Mr Elijah Omoso, a boda-boda operator who said Ms Njoki was his regular client, said he was shocked to see Muli lying lifeless in a pool of blood. He tried to look for Ms Njoki’s number to inform her of the incident but did not find it. He said he had just renewed his SIM card and in the process lost the number.

“Madam, is this not your husband? I tried to look for your number but couldn’t get it. Let us rush him to hospital!” Mr Omoso told Ms Njoki when he spotted her.

"Mob justice"

Terrified, Muli’s wife called a church leader identified as Mr Mureithi, who helped ferry Muli to Komarock Modern Hospital. He was, however, pronounced dead on arrival.

They then headed to Ruai police station to report the matter, where they were asked to wait to see the OCS, who showed up at midnight.

 Muli’s elder brother, Charles, was called at around 10:20 pm. He left his home in Syokimau and rushed straight to Ruai Police Station, where he explained to the police that his brother was a Kenya Defence Forces soldier.

The police asked the family to provide evidence as the late Muli did not have his credentials when he was lynched. They then called the military police, who responded swiftly.

The police reportedly branded it as a case of mob justice, while those suspected to have caused Muli’s death told the police the two men had tried to rob them as they were making their way back home.

An X-Ray examination revealed that Mwendwa sustained a cracked skull, broken ribs and soft tissue injuries on his right forearm.

Family's account

Mr Mwendwa dismissed social media claims that his late brother had tried to seduce Mr Jonathan Mutune’s girlfriend on their way from Fahari Hotel on Christmas night. He also denied claims that they had tried to rob the couple.

He maintained that after clearing the bill, they were hurrying to catch up with their families when they bumped into Mr Mutune and his girlfriend.

He added that Muli greeted the woman, who was a few metres from his boyfriend, and before he could get a reply, two strangers confronted him, demanding to know why he was greeting someone’s wife at night.

“Who are you to greet someone’s wife at night?” one of the two strangers posed.

“I greeted her as a man, and I have no ill intentions,” Mr Muli reportedly answered.

A bitter exchange ensued that degenerated into a fistfight and hurling of stones, with the two brothers pitted against the two strangers who had now been joined by Mr Mutune.

 “You will know I am also an ‘askari’ just like you,” the lady’s boyfriend is said to have sworn, before rushing to Mulandi flats nearby, allegedly for reinforcement.

A few moments later, he returned with a team of security guards who overpowered the two siblings. A heavy stone sent Mr Muli tumbling on the dirt road.

Mr Mwendwa scurried ahead, with three men in hot pursuit. He tripped and fell, and they started raining stones on him.

He said his saving grace was that a boda boda operator passed by and flickered his headlight on the mob, and they fled.

Mr Mwendwa hurried back, only to find his brother bleeding profusely.

Six suspects arrested

With the help of the military police, six suspects were arrested the following day. Among them was one Bernard Mutie. Well-known to the family of the late soldier, he was a security guard at the Mulandi flats and a meter reader for a borehole owner who supplies water to residents of the estate, including the Mulis.

The family is angry over stories doing the rounds on social media to the effect that Muli was amorous and a robber.

“We are deeply hurt as a family. They are not only ruining our reputation but also that of the KDF, his employer,” Mr waema said. “This was a set-up, you do not just kill somebody that way.”

“We have fought over so many issues in our 10 years of marriage, but infidelity was never an issue. My husband respected and valued his family. He could never have done that,” Ms Njoki said.

The suspects are currently in police custody after the Makadara Law Courts on Monday granted 14 more days for investigations into the matter.

Mr Muli’s burial has been slated for January 9 in Machakos, as the family awaits postmortem examination results.