Family seeks truth in death of Kenyan basketballer in US
Keegan Oyugi, a Kenyan living in the US whose body was found in a crashed vehicle on in Savage, Minnesota.
What you need to know:
- Polished point guard found dead in a car in Minnesota, father confirms in Facebook post as community cries foul.
- America-based forward Ronnie Gundo expressed shock at Oyugi’s disappearance and death under unclear circumstances.
America-based former Kenya Ports Authority point guard Keegan Oyugi, who went missing two weeks ago, was found dead early Tuesday morning in Minnesota, USA. He was 26 years.
Oyugi, a polished playmaker who was set to make his debut for Kenya Morans at the Afrobasket finals in Rwanda in August, disappeared in Minnesota on June 12 prompting a frantic search for him.
His father, Richard Ogunugu Onkunya, while confirming his son’s death in a Facebook post yesterday, said the two-week search for him ended on Tuesday.
“Thank you to family and friends for standing with us for the past two weeks as we searched for our son Keegan. We finally found him but already deceased. It is a painful reality that we must accept. May our son Keegan “Dodo” RIP until we see him again,” he posted.
The family through Oyugi’s mother Miriam Oyugi, now want the Minnetrista Police department to hand over the case to a larger agency as they seek to know the truth about his death.
Oyugi’s mother made the demands during a press conference organised by the Minnesota Kenyan Association and Minnesota United in Minnesota yesterday afternoon.
According to Lilian Otieno, co-chair of Minnesota Kenyans Association, the search for Oyugi turned into a vehicle accident investigation after his body was recovered in Savage.
Otieno said since Oyugi went missing, Kenyans in Minnesota, in collaboration with Minnesota United, a volunteer search and rescue organisation, had been conducting almost daily searches within a five-mile radius of where his cell phone was last pinged the afternoon of June 12.
Returned to Kenya
Born and brought up in the US, Oyugi returned to Kenya in 2019 to play for Kenya Ports Authority in the National Classic basketball league. He helped KPA finish third in the competition. They lost to Ulinzi Warriors in the semi-finals.
He was in the KPA team that travelled to Madagascar for the Basketball Africa League (BAL) qualifiers where they finished first and unbeaten to qualify for the inter-zonal championships in Kigali, Rwanda.
“My dear bro Keego, nothing makes sense to me at the moment, what hurts the most is you were out there alone in the cold for all those days,” said Morans star forward and former Oyugi’s teammate at KPA, Airel Okal.
America-based forward Ronnie Gundo expressed shock at Oyugi’s disappearance and death under unclear circumstances.
