Body of Activist Ibrahim Hilal Mwiti Found at Thika Level Five Mortuary

The body of a 24-year-old activist who went missing in November 2024 was found at Thika Level Five Hospital mortuary.

This was more than a month after he went missing in unclear circumstances.

Ibrahim Hilal Mwiti was last seen in Nairobi city centre before he disappeared, prompting a search by his family as his friends resorted to social media platforms seeking help to locate to him.

The family filed a missing person report at Kamukunji Police Station on November 15, 2024, under OB number 80A/13/11/24, they said.

Their search ended in death after identifying his body at a mortuary in Thika on January 2, 2025.

Police and morgue officials said the death was as a result of hit and run.

Mwiti earned a living as a delivery man some 45 kilometres away from where he was last seen.

The circumstances around Mwiti’s death remain unclear.

His mother, Sadhiya Iman said they had looked for Mwiti almost everywhere before making the painful decision to visit morgues in Nairobi and its environs, a move that eventually landed them at Thika Level Five Mortuary.

“We were informed that his case was a hit-and-run incident. We know nothing else about his death,” she said.

Mwiti was buried at the Langata Cemetery in Nairobi.

We want to know the circumstances surrounding my son’s death,” she said during her son’s burial service at Lang’ata Cemetery.

She also revealed that prior to his death, Mwiti had lost his ID card and had experienced a lot of trouble securing a replacement.

This made his life unbearable because he would be asked to identify himself whenever he needed a government service or was stopped by police.

He was targeted whenever he went before he finally went missing.

His friends said they do not believe it was a hit-and-run.

Police are yet to issue a statement on Mwiti’s case.

His death comes at a time when the State has come under fire over several abductions.

Over the past six months, cases of abductions and enforced disappearances have become common as parents living in fear of their youth disappearing without a trace.

According to the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights, there have been at least 82 cases of abductions since June last year, the period when youths took to the streets to protest against the Finance Bill.

In the last three months of 2024, at least 13 cases of abductions were recorded with December alone accounting for seven, the Commission said last week.

The Director of Public Prosecutions Mulele Ingonga directed the police to inform him on status or investigations into claims of abductions and forced disappearances by January 1, 2025.

He said he is concerned with reports of abductions and forced disappearances in the country hence need for the probe.

He said he is cognisant of the state’s obligation to protect and preserve the right to life and the freedom and security of the person as provided for under Articles 26 and 29 among other provisions of the Constitution of Kenya.

He directed the Inspector General of police Douglas Kanja and Independent Policing Oversight Authority to probe the matter within three days and forward the probe file to his office for action.

“While I have also noted the Press Statements released by the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) on 25th December indicating investigations into the various abduction incidents, and the clarification by the Inspector General of the National Police Service (NPS) on December 24 on the alleged cases of abductions by the NPS in which both institutions separately gave an undertaking to investigate the incidents, noting the gravity of the allegations, and the immense public interest that the same has drawn, I have, pursuant to Article l57 (4) of the Constitution, directed both the Inspector General of Police and the IPOA to expedite the investigations touching on reported abductions and alleged forced disappearance of citizens, and forward the resultant files for perusal and action, and/or provide an update on the investigations, within 3 days from the date hereof,” he said. 

He cited the cases of Steve Mbisi, Billy Mwangi, Peter Muteti, Bernard Kavuli, Rony Kiplang’at and recently cartoonist Gideon Kibet alias Kibet Bull.

This came as groups pushed for mass protests over the issue.

It also came days after president William Ruto broke his silence on the rising spate of abductions in the country saying he will end the abductions to restore public trust in national security.

He further urged parents to lead from the front in mentoring and protecting their children to uphold peace in the nation

“We all want to walk together. I want to urge all parents that our children are a blessing from God, and you should take care of them and the government will do our part,” Ruto said.

“All that has been said about abduction will be dealt with. We will end it so that our youth can live in peace and have faith in security agencies,” he said.

Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga had urged Ruto to address the matter with haste and bring those held culpable to book.

“The cases of young people being arrested carelessly, and being handcuffed and tortured should stop. Those behind this should be arrested,” he said.

The recent abductions of seven Kenyans in December have been linked to statements they have made against the government on social media.