Details have emerged that the detectives a in connerrested a wrong man in connection with the tragic murder of 20 year old Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology student Rita Waeni might.
The foreign national initially arrested in connection with the murder, holding a Mozambican passport, was released after witnesses failed to identify him as the person seen on CCTV during the heinous crime.
Authorities had detained him at JKIA and later transferred him to Kasarani Police Station for identification.
Investigators revealed that the released suspect did not speak Swahili, a crucial detail that contradicted witness accounts.
“Witnesses including the owner of the Airbnb said that the suspect spoke Swahili when he called her. The family of the victim shared the same information, saying the suspect spoke Swahili during their interactions while also demanding the Sh500,000 ransom,” police revealed.
Witnesses, including the Airbnb owner where the crime occurred, reported that the actual perpetrator spoke Swahili during interactions, and the victim’s family confirmed this information.
The suspect had been staying in the South C area, and his ability to communicate in Swahili became a key factor in narrowing down the search for the real culprit.
Rita Waeni, a fourth-year student at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT), met a tragic end after leaving her aunt’s residence in Syokimau to meet a friend.
The family spokesperson, Lilian Mutea, disclosed that the family received a ransom demand of Sh500,000 delivered from Rita’s phone number at 5:00 am the following day.
Disturbingly, the family’s attempts to negotiate or gather more details about the ransom were thwarted, and further demands were made even after Rita’s demise.
Compounding the tragedy, the owner of the rental apartment where the crime occurred, Priscila Maina, along with three others, including Kelvin Mutiso, Eugene Omondi, and Brian Kinoti, was arraigned in court. Maina faces charges related to the failure to register crucial tenant details, a violation of the law that hindered the investigators’ ability to trace the murderer.
