Kandara: Body of man who died in 2023 exhumed after court order

Authorities in Kandara Subcounty, Murang’a county have exhumed the body of a man who died in 2023, following a court order to conduct a fresh postmortem examination.

The exhumation of the remains of Stanley Njoroge Buchu, who died at the age of 31 after a suspected road accident, was carried out on March 20, 2026, at around 6 pm.

The exercise followed orders issued by the Thika Principal Magistrate’s Court and was conducted at Gichakayo Village in Githumu Sublocation, Ruchu Ward.

The operation was led by officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) Homicide Unit, under the leadership of Director of Homicide Martin Nyuguto, alongside a forensic team.

A postmortem examination was conducted at the site by Government Chief Pathologist Dr Johnsen Odour, in the presence of Murang’a County pathologist George Maina and the family’s doctor, Dr Anthony Muchai from Nyeri County Level V Hospital.

Approximately 50 family members were present to witness the exhumation and postmortem process.

The body is expected to be reburied following the completion of the examination, as investigations into the circumstances surrounding the man’s death continue.

It is not clear what the autopsy established. Officials said the report will be filed in court as part of the probe into the incident.

In different incidents, at least four people were killed in separate drowning incidents in the country, police said.

Police say more than 84 people have been killed in separate drowning incidents in the past two weeks. Most of the incidents are linked to flooding, which was prompted by heavy rains being experienced.

In the first incident, a tragic drowning incident claimed the life of a three-year-old girl in Ndhiwa Subcounty, Homa Bay county.

According to police, the incident was reported on March 20, 2026, at around 10:14 pm at Wiodielo Village, Olasi Sublocation.

Police visited the scene and found the lifeless body of the minor lying in a deep, open ditch filled with water.

Preliminary investigations indicate that the child had been left at home by her mother while she briefly stepped away to use the toilet.

Believing the child was playing within the homestead, the mother continued with household chores, only to later realise the girl was missing.

Alarmed, she alerted neighbours, and a search was immediately launched.

The child’s body was later discovered in a water-filled ditch a few meters from the family home at about 7 pm.

The body was retrieved with the assistance of members of the public and police officers and moved to Ndhiwa Sub-County Hospital mortuary, where a postmortem examination is expected to be carried out.

Authorities have urged parents and guardians to remain vigilant and ensure young children are closely supervised, especially around open water sources and hazardous areas.

In Mwea, Kirinyaga County, a body was found in a water canal after a suicide incident.

The police said the victim was identified as Joseph Waithaka, 63.

The circumstances of his death were not clear, police said as they moved the body to the mortuary for autopsy.

Elsewhere, police in Kisumu county have launched investigations following the discovery of a man’s body floating in floodwaters in the Migosi area.

Police said the body was spotted floating on water at Carwash Junction and retrieved the body from the flooded area.

The deceased was later positively identified by local residents as Tobias Oyoo, a 45-year-old man.

The body was moved to Kisumu County Referral Hospital mortuary, where it is awaiting a postmortem examination to establish the exact cause of death.

And police in Igoji Subcounty, Meru County, are investigating a drowning incident after the body of a 46-year-old man was discovered in a local stream.

The body of the deceased, identified as Morris Mwenda, was found trapped in long grass along Kithima Spring stream in Mutonga Sub-location, Kuiri Location.

The remains were later moved to St. Anne Hospital mortuary, where a postmortem examination will be conducted to determine the exact cause of death. Authorities have commenced investigations into the circumstances surrounding the incident.