Two years ago, Stephen Musili, a teacher at Hulugho Primary School in Garissa County, escaped death by a whisker after an encounter with suspected Al-Shabaab terrorists.
The attackers also left a chilling warning; they would return.
The teacher had also once been attacked by his own students after he disciplined one of them. At the time, Mr Musili, 35, worked as an intern tutor and promptly pleaded with his employer, the Teachers Service Commission (TSC), to transfer him from Garissa.
His wife, Leah Musili, told the Daily Nation how her husband was attacked alongside a colleague while leaving school.
“That day it was raining heavily. He ran so fast and hid somewhere. But his shoes were taken by the suspects and inscribed some words… ‘Lion One. Wait for Lion Two,” said the widow.
Slain teacher Stephen Musili with his wife, Leah Musili.
Photo credit: Pool
Ms Musili said whenever her husband got intelligence about imminent terror attacks, alongside other male teachers, they would abandon their houses and spend the nights in police stations, at the chief’s office or in trenches.
“But this time, he was caught off-guard. The attack happened in the wee hours of the morning,” she added.
After the first raid and warning, Ms Musili begged her husband to leave the place. However, the TSC reportedly declined his request, and he stayed on to fend for his family.
"The county director of education held meetings, and a peace agreement was made with parents. My husband was assured of his safety. The head teacher refused to sign his transfer letter. He was told if he didn't want to work, he should resign," she said.
On January 2, 2025, he got a better deal when he was employed on permanent and pensionable terms.
When I tried his number, it was busy. I later learned that the attackers had invaded their residential compound and shot him dead," Ms Musili told the Daily Nation.
"My husband was the sole breadwinner for us, his parents, and three siblings. He had big plans for us. His dream was to leave that station and work in Garissa town so we could bring up our children together," she said.
Slain teacher Stephen Musili. He was a teacher at Hulugho Primary School in Garissa County and was killed by suspected Al-Shabaab gunmen on Sunday January 26, 2026.
Photo credit: Pool
According to witnesses, the gunmen first entered a female teacher's house.
"They told her they do not kill women and demanded to know where the male teachers were. Under duress, she revealed the truth," Ms Musili and his colleagues told Nation .
They narrated how the teacher tried to hide behind the door, but when they broke in, he attempted to flee. He was shot in the legs, then executed with a second shot to the back. This happened just hours after his last phone call to his wife at 10 pm, when he had sounded calm.
Ms Musili lives in Garissa town and is also a teacher. She met her husband in Garissa, where she worked at a private school. They married in 2020 and have two children.
The ECDE teacher urged the county government to help her find employment to take care of their two children.
“Our relatives are planning to bring the body to Garissa where most of our family members are as we plan the burial. Our home is in Mwingi, but we ‘hustle’ in Garissa. My husband had big plans for us, I am heartbroken,” said Ms Musili.
Mr Musili’s sister, Winfred Musili, a teacher in the same sub-county, says she is ready to quit alongside 10 others who were interviewed by Daily Nation if the TSC does not redeploy them to safer areas.
"I am not going back. I will not be safe after they killed my brother; we share the same name, and they will definitely come after me. The threats were real. The 'Second Lion' has taken my brother," Ms Winfred said.
“My brother went to TSC offices to complain and was promised that he would be posted to a nearby school where I teach. The threats were real, they actualised the threats,” she said.
Ms Winfred said seeking transfer is not easy, especially if the head of a school declines. However, she said her brother’s case should have been given special consideration because of the threats to his life.
Presently, 33 non-local teachers in Hulugho Sub-county are seeking a way out. Mr Victor Onyango, a colleague, said Mr Musili was particularly vulnerable because he spoke the local Somali language and interacted closely with residents, leading some to wrongly suspect he was an undercover agent.
“The threats began way back in 2022 when they wrote the Lion One threats. At one time, he was also beaten by his learners. They warned him that they will eventually catch him. On Saturday, we played football with KDF officers and later went to our residential places. On Sunday we trained in our school for volleyball,” recalled Mr Onyango.
Stephen Musili with his wife, Leah, and their children. He was killed on Sunday, January 26, 2026 by suspected Al-Shabaab gunmen.
Photo credit: Pool
On the fateful Sunday, Mr Onyango said they heard several gunshots; however, they did not know they would attack a teacher.
“We thought there was an exchange between the Al-Shabaab and the security agents. They burned down a chief’s car and a shop. They went straight to the teacher’s plot and killed him. Our colleague tried to run but they shot him,” said the teacher.
“He was more of a local teacher than some of us because he had trained here and was speaking their language. He spoke pure Somali, he related well with the locals. When the first incident, a threat to his life happened, he asked for a transfer but it was declined,” said Mr Onyango.
Mr Onyango, who has taught in the county for four years, said his school has 24 non-local teachers and two locals, including two others employed by the board of management.
“I want out. I cannot risk my life anymore. We cannot continue losing our lives. I cannot work here. If it means losing this job let it be it,” he said.
The Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) County Executive Secretary, Milchzedeck Igunza, said TSC should redeploy non-local teachers from unsafe areas to safer areas within the county.
“TSC should employ local teachers to bridge the gap, that can help. But the non-local teachers should be taken to safer areas,” he said.
TSC chairperson Jamleck Muturi condemned the killing of the teacher, stating that the safety of teachers is now being handled by a multi-agency team.
“The commission has sent a team of senior officers to Garissa to assess the situation and offer support to affected teachers,” Muturi said.
Stephen Musili’s body was on Monday, January 26, ferried to Chiromo Funeral Home in Nairobi. The TSC has not responded to the accusations over the transfer issue.
Attacks against non-local teachers in the North Eastern region remain a challenge, where teachers are, at times, killed.
In 2023, more than 100 other teachers fled the region, and the TSC took a hardline stance and interdicted them.
However, recently, a teacher who had sued TSC won the landmark case after the Employment and Labour Relations Court ordered his immediate deployment to a safe work station.
