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Mistaken for KQ London stowaway, he is rejected by his own as ‘evil spirit’

 

For the past three years, Cedric Shivonje has not known peace. An incident that took place thousands of miles away has cast a dark shadow in his life.

In Makhwabue village of Kakamega County, residents believe Mr Shivonje was the stowaway who fell off a Kenya Airways plane as it approached Heathrow Airport in London in June 2019.

They claim the real Shivonje died in the incident and that his spirit is the one roaming the village. They say his presence is ominous and would bring misfortunes to the community.

“Some of my close relatives claim I joined a cult and my spirit boarded the KQ plane and fell off in London. They claim I was paid millions of shillings as compensation and that my presence in the village is unacceptable,” Mr Shivonje, 27, told the Nation in his home yesterday.

Arrested

In August 2019, two months after the stowaway fell off the plane, he was arrested in Nairobi as a suspect in a criminal case and spent three months at the Industrial Area prison. At the time, he was teaching at a private academy in the city.

While in prison, he was shocked to see his photos circulating in the media, claiming he was the stowaway who had plummeted 3,500ft, half-frozen as the plane prepared to land at Heathrow.

Cedric Shivonje emerges from cell

The stowaway had actually been identified as Paul Manyasi by the British media and was said to have been working for a cleaning services company at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.

“While in prison, I was shocked to see my photos and name being linked to the stowaway. Here I was in prison and yet media reports indicated that I had fallen from a plane and crashed to death,” said Mr Shivonje. 

Evil spirit roaming the world

 Cedric Shivonje

Cedric Shivonje with his mother, Janet Khakali, at their home in Makhwabue village, Malava, Kakamega County, on March 2, 2022.

Isaac Wale | Nation Media Group

When Mr Shivonje returned to the village, the sea of relatives he had grown up with had turned into a desert of strangers. No one was willing to come near him. He was an outcast in the midst of his own people. 

His mother, Ms Janet Khakali, has been praying for him, hoping that the dark cloud hovering over his life would be blown away and give her son a chance to open a new chapter.

Last month, Mr Shivonje was in shock after close relatives – including his uncles and aunts – skipped the memorial service of his grandmother, saying they did not want to meet him.

“They said I have joined a cult and become an evil spirit roaming the world. They don’t believe that I’m human and that at the time the incident involving the Kenya Airways plane happened, I was in Nairobi teaching at a private academy,” said Mr Shivonje, looking distraught and bewildered.

Left by wife

As he goes about his normal activities at home, neighbours stare curiously from a distance. They always avoid him. His ex-wife, Ms Laurah Mukhanyi, left after rumours started circulating that her husband had joined a cult.

“I was released from prison on December 7, 2019. I travelled home with my wife. I didn’t want to continue staying in the city since I had lost my job,” said Mr Shivonje.

When they got home, his father, Mr Isaac Bett, organised a cleansing ceremony before he could rejoin the rest of the family.

“I travelled to the village and got home at night. After the ceremony, I was free to continue with my life but shortly after, our neighbours started acting suspiciously,” said Mr Shivonje.

Neighbours spread rumours that his spirit had come back home after he fell off the plane.

Cedric Shivonje rejected by his own as ‘wandering evil spirit’

Spirit of a dead man

“My wife secretly left complaining that I had joined a cult. I tried to persuade her but she said she could no longer trust me,” said Mr Shivonje. He fell in love again and married Ruth Mukonyole.

“I have explained everything to my new wife and she has agreed to stay with me. It has been a tough period in my life, but I will continue fighting until the truth is known,” said Mr Shivonje.

He joined the boda boda business but villagers avoided him, saying the motorcycle belonged to the spirit of a dead man.

“Nobody in the village boards my motorcycle. They claim that it belongs to a spirit. I don’t understand why this is happening to me,” he said.

Before he left Nairobi, a lawyer told him that he had sued the British media organisation that had claimed he was the stowaway off the KQ plane and that he would be compensated.

“The lawyer sent me ShSh46,000 via M-Pesa and promised that I would be paid more money. But for the past one year, he has been avoiding my calls. I’m in the dark on whether the issue of the compensation was settled,” said Mr Shivonje.

He now plans to move to a neighbouring village to live a peaceful life.

“I have bought a parcel of land elsewhere and I’m putting up a house. I can no longer continue staying in our village after all the bad things our neighbours have said about me,” said Mr Shivonje.     BY DAILY NATION    

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