Detectives are investigating the death of a third-year student at Kibabii University, Bungoma County.
Police said Brian Wambani was found dead in a private hostel occupied by students near the college after suffocation by suspected carbon monoxide.
Witnesses said the body was found on a supine position across the bed and his feet were on the floor on April 27.
Police who visited the scene said there was no visible injury.
A charcoal jiko was found inside his house, and preliminary investigations suggest that his death might have been caused by suffocation.
The body was moved to the Bungoma County referral hospital mortuary for preservation, awaiting autopsy.
Carbon monoxide poisoning, always referred to as ‘the silent killer’ happens when the toxic odourless gases emitted from burning wood or charcoal mix with blood and affect oxygen circulation in the body.
When one breathes in carbon monoxide, it enters the blood, mixes with the red blood cells’ haemoglobin to form poisonous carboxyhaemoglobin that prevents blood from transporting oxygen.
On April 25, two children were found dead in their house after suspected carbon monoxide poisoning in Kathonzweni, Makueni County.
The children were aged four and three.
The carbon monoxide is suspected to have been emitted by a burning jiko found in their room in Bondeni village in Ituka Sub-location in the April 25 incident.
Officials advise against using jikos in poorly ventilated rooms.
The police say such incidents have been on the rise amid campaigns to address the issue.
Elsewhere in the Nyanchwa area, Kisii County, a man aged 27 was found dead near Nyosia Primary School.
Police said the body was found on April 17, but the family took the body to the mortuary and failed to report the same. It was reported on April 28.
The probe into the incident is ongoing.
