There was relief when the family of slain university student Rita Waeni Muendo Thursday identified a human head that had recovered from a dam as that of the woman.
This was made through her forehead, hair and teeth formation.
Waeni was a fourth year student at the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture Technology.
The move gave pathologists led by chief government pathologist Johansen Oduor the green light to conduct an autopsy of the head as part of efforts to establish how she died on January 13 at an apartment in Roysambu, Nairobi.
The exercise was conducted at the City Mortuary following an earlier one that had been done on other dismembered body parts.
The family had identified a blouse that had been found wrapped around the head when it was discovered at a dam in Kiambaa, Kiambu County on January 21.
Detectives suspect the killing of Waeni was part of an ongoing occultism in the country.
The investigation team wants to know if there are more such killings similar to that of Waeni.
The dismembered body of Waeni was found in a dustbin at an apartment on TRM Drive, Kasarani but her head was missing.
Read: Autopsy Says Rita Waeni’s Killer Used Hacksaw to Dismember Body, Clipped Her Nails
The head was later found wrapped in a purple female blouse and then put in a green carrier bag with a stone in it.
The human head was found floating in Ite Dam at Kimuga village, Kimuga sub-location, Kiambaa location by locals.
On Sunday January 21, two Nigerians were arrested over the murder hours after the discovery of the head.
A hatchet, butcher’s knife, a national identity card belonging to one Kenyan Omar Mwamkwaju Juma, six mobile phones, three laptops, 10 SIM cards from different teleco service providers and other items were recovered at the house where the two suspects were living.
A court Monday allowed police to hold the Nigerians for eight days pending probe on their possible involvement in the murder.
The two were arrested in Ndenderu area, Kiambu County moments after a head of a woman was discovered at Ite Dam at Kimuga village in the area.
Police said the two Nigerians are William Ovie Opia whose passport is expired and Johnbull Asbor who did not have any travel documents at the time of his arrest.
Asbor told the detectives that he lost his passport two years ago.
The suspects were traced by the DCI detectives to an apartment in Ndenderu in Kiambu County where they were picked up on Sunday.
They will be in custody until January 31.
Police said Opia bought a hatchet from an online vendor and he told investigators that he had bought it for self-defense.
Read Also: Waeni’s Head had Stone Tied to it, Police Reveal as They Probe Cult Links
It is not clear if the tool was used in the murder.
A postmortem conducted on the body on Friday January 19 showed she had missing fingernails.
“This person who did all these also tried to clip off the fingernails for reasons which I might not be able to know but for us scientists when we see fingernails clipped off, we think probably the person was trying to hide evidence so that we are unable to get his DNA from the victim,” Oduor said.
The finding has left detectives puzzled with the motive of the killing still not yet established.
“I don’t know why but in investigations, such nails help in gathering evidence. People fight when dying and DNA evidence can be hidden there,” Oduor said.
The autopsy confirmed that the body was dismembered with the head chopped off and the legs also cut away from the trunk.
“The skin looks like it was cut with a sharp object but the bone was sawed off with what looks like a hacksaw. This is the first time I’m seeing something like this. In my forensic life, I have never come across such an incident, Oduor said.
The pathologists picked sample from kidney, stomach, vagina and blood for toxicology analysis at government chemist for further tests to ascertain if their were substances introduced to the body.
The family said the killer had demanded a ransom of Sh500,000 for him not to kill Waeni. It also emerged the killer had sent a picture to the family using Rita’s mobile phone as he prepared to kill her using a hacksaw as part of efforts to push them send the money he had demanded.
According to the family, she left her aunt’s residence in Syokimau to meet with a friend.
They said at around 5 am January 14, her father received a message, delivered from her phone number, demanding a ransom of Sh500,000 within 24 hours for the release of the student.
“With this message, the family reported the matter to the police and DCI, and investigations began,” said the statement.
They said an additional two messages were sent to the family demanding the ransom.
“Unfortunately, the family did not get further details about the ransom or an opportunity to explore this route. Additionally, some demands were made when she had already been murdered,” the family said.
The body parts of the student, who was due to join her fourth year of university, were found inside a trash bag in the apartment by the caretaker on Sunday January 14.
“We believe she was lured by her killer, who also tried to extort money from her family, even after killing her,” the family added.
They described her as “an intelligent, smart girl beyond her age at the very start of her youth,” who was known for her kindness, laughter, and “ability to light up any room she entered.” End
