A 39-year-old man from Mururi Trading Centre, Kirinyaga County, who had been missing for over a month, has been found dead in what police suspect to be a murder case.
The deceased, James Mwaura, who worked as a loader in Embu, was discovered at the Kerugoya Hospital Mortuary after weeks of frantic searching by his family.
His father, Robert Karanja Mwaura, a retired teacher, said he received a call from Mwea East Sub-County detectives informing him that a body matching his son’s description had been taken to the morgue.
“I had been looking for my son in vain until yesterday afternoon when I received a call from detectives in Mwea East. They informed me that a body had been taken to Kerugoya Mortuary and suspected it could be my son,” he said.
Upon visiting the facility, Karanja positively identified the body, which bore multiple injuries, suggesting a brutal killing.
“The body had several wounds on different parts. I believe his abductors used blunt objects to kill him,” he added sorrowfully.
According to police reports, residents of Murubara discovered the body on September 28, 2025, dumped along the Mwea–Embu Highway. It was initially recorded as that of an unknown male adult.
Witnesses described a scene indicating a violent struggle. One resident, Francis Muriithi, said the victim’s shirt was found a few meters from the body, while another, Phillip Njogu, reported that the body had wire marks on the neck and limbs, suggesting the victim was restrained before being killed.
“It looked like the killers tied him with wires before killing him. He must have died a painful death,” Njogu said.
Dozens of locals heading to church on that Sunday morning gathered at the scene as word spread about the gruesome discovery.
Karanja, who identified his son’s body alongside members of the ACK Mururi Church, said the family would now prepare for a decent burial after a heartbreaking search that ended in tragedy.
The grieving father, who lost his wife in October 2023, said the death of his only son had left him shattered.
“I survived the 1990 Molo tribal clashes and the 2007–2008 post-election violence, only to lose my wife last year. Now my son has been murdered. I’m appealing to police in Embu and Kirinyaga to investigate and bring those responsible to justice,” he pleaded.
Police say investigations are ongoing to establish the circumstances surrounding the murder and to identify those behind the heinous act.
