Detectives arrested a farm worker after the body of his colleague, who had earlier been reported missing, was exhumed from a shallow grave on a farm in Itabua, Embu West Sub-County.
The deceased was identified as Lawrence Murimi Njiru, a 29-year-old farm worker employed at a farm in Gichobirori Village, Itabua Location.
The grim discovery was made on Wednesday during a follow-up investigation into a missing person report that had been lodged with Itabua Police Station.
The report had been filed after Lawrence disappeared under unclear circumstances.
A multi-agency team comprising the Sub-County Security Committee, Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), Scenes of Crime officers and public health officials revisited the farm, where they established that the missing worker had been secretly buried in a shallow grave within the property.
Investigators found that a banana stem had been planted over the grave in an apparent attempt to conceal the burial site.
The body was exhumed and preliminary examination revealed multiple deep cut wounds to the head, a stab wound on the lower back and a broken right wrist, suggesting the victim had been violently assaulted before being buried.
Crime scene officers documented and processed the scene before the body was transferred to Embu Level Five Hospital Mortuary for a post-mortem examination.
Police arrested another farm worker who was employed on the same farm as the deceased. Detectives say the suspect is assisting with investigations into the murder.
Investigations are ongoing to establish the motive behind the killing and whether additional suspects were involved.
The case has shocked residents of the area, who are demanding swift justice for the slain farm worker.
It is not yet clear what prompted the murder.
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