Lawrence Kamau holds a portrait of his mother, Jackline Wangui, at their home in Langalanga Estate, Nakuru, on August 31, 2026.
The family of Jackline Wangui was plunged into fresh grief when her brother was found dead, barely a day after she was buried following her brutal murder in Nakuru.
James Njoroge, 45, a casual construction worker, had been missing since September 1 when neighbours discovered his body in a thicket about 800 metres from his home in Muchatha, Yamogo village.
According to a police incident report, Mr Njoroge went missing on September 1, 2026, only for passers-by to be disturbed by a foul smell coming from a thicket 800 metres from his home.
The report says neighbours discovered Njoroge’s body and called the police, who took the body to Gachie Seventh Day Adventist mortuary.
A search of the house revealed a suspected suicide note indicating that the man had found it hard to live with the murder of his sister Wangui who was buried on Thursday.
Ms Wangui, who worked as a receptionist at Leopard Hotel along Kanu Street in Nakuru town, was found dead in Kagoto Quarry two weeks after she had gone missing.
According to the police, one of the motives being investigated as a possible cause of her death was a deal gone sour. She had sold a piece of land and had received an advance payment of Sh380,000.
The investigation file seen by Nation indicates that she was last seen with the land buyer, who is believed to have been her lover, and another woman, shortly before she went missing.
Her decomposing body was found with signs of a macabre murder: the skin on her face and head had been peeled off, and her eyes had been gouged out.
A post-mortem report indicated that she had been tortured before being strangled to death.
Preliminary investigations by the Nakuru Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) suggest that she was lured by a phone call on August 14. She then took a boda boda to an entertainment venue where she had drinks with a man and a woman before she went missing, only for her body to be discovered two weeks later.
Kiambu County Police Commander Mr Osando Samani said the cause of Njoroge’s death will only be established after a postmortem.
“We will now have the body subjected to a postmortem to fully understand the circumstances in which he died,” he said.
Mr Samani said Kiambu detectives would liaise with their Nakuru counterparts to establish whether the deaths of the sister and her brother were linked.
Family spokesperson Samuel Waiganjo said the family was apprehensive about the twin tragedies and hoped God, in His unfailing grace, would heal their hearts.
Michael Njuguna holds a portrait of his sister Jackline Wangui at their home in Langalanga estate, in Nakuru City on August 31, 2026.
“This is too much, especially for our ailing father, who has been worst hit by the two deaths,” he said.
He said Mr Njoroge had shown signs of depression after viewing his sister’s body at the mortuary.
“On Tuesday morning, he complained of a headache and was taken to hospital, where the doctor said he was suffering from depression,” Mr Waiganjo said.
He said the doctor prescribed medication and recommended that Mr Njoroge get plenty of rest.
In Nakuru, County Police Commander Samuel Boit described Ms Wangui’s death as a “well-coordinated murder incident”.
Mr Boit said 11 witnesses had so far recorded statements with the DCI, adding that he hoped the case would be solved as soon as possible.
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