Nyeri tycoon's death was likely a contract killing, police say
Homicide detectives believe that the death of renowned Nyeri businessman Erasmus Kinyua last month was a contract killing and his widow could be at the centre of it.
A prisons officer, a nurse, a boda boda operator and an alleged KWS imposter are also believed to have been involved in the murder, said to have been triggered by infidelity.
The businessman, who owned an electronics shop in Nyeri town, was lured to his death on his farm in Kangemi in December.
He had put up part of his estate for sale and his killers are said to have posed as potential buyers on December 19, when they beat him to death.
The businessman reportedly drove them to the property in his car but he did not come out alive. Locals later found him bludgeoned to death and his car abandoned at the scene.
An autopsy report showed that he died as a result of blunt force trauma to the head.
Police records at the time showed that no valuables were taken from the scene, ruling out robbery as the motive.
Detectives were certain from the start that this was a murder, and recent developments now point to a possible contract killing allegedly worth Sh400,000.
Detectives yesterday alleged that an illicit relationship between the businessman’s widow and a prisons officer with Nyeri Main Prison in King’ong’o likely triggered the murder.
Nyeri sub-county Criminal Investigations Officer John Gacheru confirmed the arrest of Doris Wambui, the widow, and Police Constable Benson Musili as the main suspects in the killing.
Three other suspects, among them a nurse, a guard posing as a KWS officer and a boda boda rider, have also been arrested.
Nyeri Businessman Erasmus Kinyua who was killed on December 19, 2021.
“We have a total of five suspects in custody with links to the murder. We are in the process of piecing up the forensic evidence and questioning potential witnesses before we begin the trial,” Mr Gacheru said.
Illicit relationship
The Nation has learned that the widow and the prisons officer had been in a love affair for years and the slain trader had caught wind of the illicit relationship.
As a result, he is said to have cut off the woman from his businesses and other properties, triggering a dispute between the couple.
Detectives believe a murder plot was hatched, with the widow and her lover as the masterminds.
They are said to have sought the services of two hitmen, who were allegedly promised Sh400,000 for the dirty work.
Mr Gacheru, the lead detective, told the Nation that claims about the payout were being investigated.
“There have been such reports, which we are investigating, and we will ascertain if they are true and how each suspect was involved,” he said.
Police have also said that the widow and her lover allegedly tried to flee Kenya when detectives started investigating the case.
On December 22, three days after the killing, detectives using mobile phone transmissions, tracked down Ms Wambui and her lover to Kivaa in Machakos County.
Police sources said the two were intercepted while heading to a hideout in Machakos with plans to flee to Tanzania. A saloon car they had been using was also impounded.
Complete their investigations
On December 23, they were presented before Principal Magistrate James Macharia in Nyeri and police sought to detain them for 21 days.
The magistrate instead granted them 14 days to finalise their investigations.
“After the two-week duration, we shall come back to assess how far the detectives have gone with the investigations and if (necessary) the court shall add the police more days to enable them to complete their investigations,” the magistrate said.
When the two were arrested, police also seized mobile phone SIM cards suspected to have been used by the perpetrators in committing the offence.
Detectives say they have established that the cards were used by the masterminds to communicate with the hitmen using burner phones.
Mobile phone data helped detectives arrest the boda boda rider and the guard, who are believed to have killed the trader.
A female nurse who was reportedly in a relationship with the prisons officer was also arrested after being found with one of the phones that she was supposedly meant to dispose of.
The case continues on January 10. BY DAILY NATION

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