Detectives are investigating the death of a 59-year-old caretaker who was found dead inside a compound in Gathanji, Githunguri Sub-County, Kiambu County, in circumstances police are treating as a suspected violent killing.
The body of Josphat Njoroge Nganga was discovered on Monday evening by a casual worker who had gone to the home to wash clothes.
The worker arrived at the compound at about 4 pm and found the main gate open. She tried contacting Njoroge by phone but received no response.
She then contacted the property owner, who had travelled on August 29, leaving Njoroge as the caretaker. The owner reportedly instructed her to check inside the house.
She told police that she found Njoroge’s body lying on the floor, with his nose and mouth covered with a piece of cloth. His hands and legs had reportedly been tied with a nylon rope.
A neighbour told police that Njoroge had last been seen alive at Gathanji Shopping Centre at about 4 pm on Sunday, August 30.
The property owner told investigators that nothing appeared to have been stolen from the house. However, Njoroge’s mobile phone could not be traced.
Police officers from Githunguri Police Station visited the scene, which was processed by the Kiambu Crime Scene Support team.
The body was moved to Mukoe Funeral Home, where it is being preserved pending a postmortem examination to establish the cause of death.
Police have launched investigations into the circumstances surrounding Njoroge’s death.
In a separate incident, police in Thika West, Kiambu County, recovered the badly decomposed body of an unidentified man from a thicket near Kivulini Estate.
The body was discovered on Monday evening at about 6:30 pm when a salesperson was supervising bush-clearing activities on a parcel of land owned by the bank, adjacent to Kivulini Estate.
The workers stumbled upon the remains and alerted the authorities.
Police officers visited the scene, about two kilometres east of the station, where they found the body of an unidentified adult male lying in a prone position in the thicket.
Police said circumstances at the scene suggested that the man may have been homeless and had been sleeping at the location.
Crime Scene Investigation officers processed the scene before the remains were removed to Thika General Kago Mortuary, where they will be preserved pending a postmortem examination and efforts to establish the man’s identity.
Police have launched investigations into the circumstances surrounding the man’s death.
The incidents come amid ongoing police efforts to investigate reported deaths.
