Matatu crew arrested after passenger falls to death from moving vehicle in Athi River

A matatu crew was arrested after a passenger fell to his death from their vehicle along the Nairobi- Namanga highway in Athi River.

Witnesses and the family of Joseph Mureithi claim he was thrown out of the bus on Tuesday night, moments after he had boarded.

He was a petrol station attendant in the area.

The family alleged that moments after he was ejected, the same vehicle ran over him before speeding off, leaving him fatally injured by the roadside.

Officials at the Super Metro bus said they are cooperating with investigations.

The crew told police the victim misstepped as he tried to board the bus and fell off, but witnesses claimed there was a brief argument with the conductor as the matatu was full before Mureithi fell off.

Mureithi, a petrol attendant at a station in Athi River, had finished work and walked to a bus stop along the busy Nairobi-Namnaga highway, a few metres from Shalom Hospital.

He later boarded the matatu heading to Nairobi from Kitengela at around 11 pm, witnesses told police.

Moments after Mureithi boarded, the vehicle pulled away, and the 25-year-old was allegedly pushed out of the moving bus.

He landed on his head as the vehicle also hit him. He had a deep cut in the stomach.

A police car that was near there responded after witnesses alerted the officers and pursued the bus to Mlolongo, where it was intercepted. Boda boda riders had also joined the chase.

The matatu was later towed to the Athi River Police Station. The driver and the conductor are in police custody pending a probe.

An autopsy on the body was scheduled for Thursday as detectives appealed to more witnesses to come forward with any information that could shed light on the circumstances surrounding his death.

Elsewhere, one person died, and several others were seriously injured after a matatu lost control and plunged into River Nyakibaai in Gatundu, Kiambu county.

The police said the vehicle was carrying mourners returning from a funeral in Nakuru to Gatumbi village when it developed mechanical problems, including a puncture and brake failures, before the crash.

The vehicle veered off the road, rolled down a hill and stopped near the riverbank.

Local leaders and rescuers said about 18 people, including children, were pulled from the wreckage.

Officials at the Murang’a County Referral Hospital said the facility received reports of the crash at around 4am and deployed ambulances to the scene on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, seven people were killed on Wednesday night in separate road accidents, police said.

The victims included five pedestrians, a driver and a rider. Police said at least 21 people were injured in the accidents.