An 82-year-old woman, whose decomposed body was discovered nine months after her death, may have been killed, detectives now believe.
This has now added a new twist to the saga with detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) taking over.
The officers from Homicide Unit, suggest a well-coordinated murder plot after the carcasses of Leah Njeri, dogs, and chicken were found in her compound.
Police had initially thought the woman who stayed alone died out of natural causes but after the pets were found also dead it opened a new angle.
They intend to talk to the woman’s relatives and those who visited her frequently as part of the probe into the incident. The woman’s son, who works in the aviation industry, had been sending her monthly upkeep, some relatives said.
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Njeri, a retired teacher, is said to have been a loner, who rarely interacted with her neighbours.
In June, police officers had been informed by her granddaughter that Njeri was not home. The granddaughter, who lives in South Africa, had traveled home to visit her grandmother but no one opened the gate when she knocked.
She reported the incident, prompting the DCI to unravel the mystery.
Head of homicide unit Martin Nyuguto who is leading the Kilifi cult probe sent a team to the scene to back up the Thika one in the probe, sources said.
An autopsy is planned as part of probe into the saga. The body was found in Jamaica Estate in Landless area, where Njeri lived.
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Njeri’s house, which is now a crime scene is located opposite Carta Oakhill School, a day care, kindergarten, and primary school. Its playground is just opposite Njeri’s house. No one in sight.
Since the retired teacher’s remains were discovered, police and neighbours said, none of her relatives have visited the area.
Njeri’s son, Charles Githuka, who lives less than 800 metres away is yet to be seen.
His wife is a teacher at a school located less than a kilometre from Njeri’s house and uses the same road that connects her home to that of her mother in-law. A neighbor who raised the alarm on Njeri’s whereabouts told he became worried after not seeing her for a long time.
They raised the issue with police officers from Makongeni Police Station who escalated the matter to Thika Police Station through its DCI office. In the house, the television set had been broken and the clothes were scattered all over.
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Police believe someone was ransacking the house for something and he or she was in a hurry to get it.
The ceiling of the house looked like it had been tampered with and house items were scattered all over.
Njeri lived a solitary and lonely life. Neighbours say she was an introvert who kept it to herself, rarely interacting with others.
Former Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko’s attention was drawn to the bizarre incident. Sonko said he was disturbed by the incident and called upon people to look after their parents, especially in old age.
Sonko recalled losing his mother 25 years ago and said parents should be accorded respect in their sunset days.
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“I am man enough but I had to shed tears after reading this story. This old shosho of 82 yrs whose decomposing body was found in Thika was left to die alone 9 months ago. Life without our mothers is very tough, for me it has been over 25 years since my lovely mum Saumu went to be with God but I still feel the pain everyday.”
“Our parents are human and they are not perfect, they go through very difficult situations and sacrifice a lot to provide for their children.”
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