A man has been sentenced to 20 years in prison after being found guilty of killing Grace Wangari Mwangi, the mother of Bishop Pius Muiru, in March 2017.
Ezekiel Saitabu Nakola, 44, was convicted of murdering Wangari on 20 March 2017, at her home in Karega sub-location, Kigumo, Murang’a County, where he had worked as a farmhand for ten years.
Among those testifying at the trial was Nakola’s new girlfriend, who had left her husband to live with Nakola. She said he gave her items stolen from the victim’s home, adding to the evidence against him.
Wangari, who was 75 years old, was found murdered and buried in a shallow grave within her compound, next to a cow carcass, days after she was reported missing.
During the investigation, both Nakola and Bishop Muiru’s sister-in-law, Monicah Muthoni, were arrested as primary suspects.
They faced charges for the murder of Wangari at her home.
During the proceedings, Nakola claimed that Muthoni had hired him for Sh10,000 to carry out the murder. Muiru’s wife, Lucy, testified that Muthoni had a troubled relationship with their mother-in-law, which further implicated her.
However, Muthoni was acquitted on 9 June 2022, due to a lack of evidence.
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Justice Kanyi Kimondo found Nakola guilty of murder on 30 July 2024, after the court heard how he had betrayed the victim he had served for years.
“On the fateful day, the accused strangled the deceased and buried her behind the cowshed, where the carcass of a cow had been buried a few days earlier,” the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) stated.
Justice Kimondo noted that the prosecution had established the case beyond a reasonable doubt, despite the lack of direct witnesses and Nakola’s confession.
Over the course of the seven-year trial, the prosecution called 12 witnesses, including Mathew Waweru, Bishop Muiru’s brother. Waweru recounted finding their mother’s house locked and the lights on when he checked.
On 22 March 2017, Waweru began to inquire at local markets about his mother’s whereabouts. Along with another brother, Felix Mwangi, who is married to Muthoni, they broke into their mother’s house after exhausting other leads.
When they still could not locate her, they reported her missing at Kigumo Police Station and began searching hospitals and mortuaries.
Since Nakola had been the last person to be seen with Wangari, he became of interest to the police. Detectives recovered her phone at his residence and other stolen items at his girlfriend’s flat.
Nakola later confessed to killing Wangari and burying her remains. Her body was exhumed on 26 March 2017, from a shallow grave and taken to Lee Funeral Home in Nairobi.
A post-mortem examination revealed that she died from asphyxia due to ligature strangulation. Additionally, a witness testified that Nakola had withdrawn money from the victim’s mobile payment app following her murder.
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