On July 7, 2021, Asian tycoon Sidik Anverali Sumra, 48, and his driver, Rahil Kasmani Mohamed, embarked on a journey to Kilifi, their hearts set on acquiring a 90-acre piece of land to expand Sumra’s thriving dairy empire.
But what began as a business venture ended in bloodshed, fire, and unanswered questions. Their grey Toyota Fielder was reduced to ashes and their bodies also burned.
James Kafani Kazungu, the land agent who had guided them to Junju Village, suffered the same cruel fate.
Ironically, both Sumra and Kazungu were no strangers to the locals. Sumra’s dairy farm in Kikambala-Amkeni had provided livelihoods to many.
Yet, as the evening sun cast long shadows over Junju village around 6pm, fate took a brutal turn.
According to court records, the three were either accused of attempting to take squatters’ land or suspected of a more sinister crime—trafficking in human body parts.
In the ensuing chaos, they were set upon, butchered, and burned, their screams swallowed by the merciless night.
After their killings, the local police were put under pressure to find and arrest those behind these unwarranted and gruesome murders.
In response, a multi-agency team, comprising the General Service Unit (GSU), regular and administration police, descended upon the village.
The raid led to the rounding up of 17 people, mostly comprising women and children. Upon conclusion of investigations, nine individuals, including former Junju Ward Representative Onesmus Gambo Karisa, were charged with three counts of murder. They all pleaded not guilty.
But justice, elusive and fickle, failed to emerge from the four years of trial, with the High Court in Mombasa condemning the investigation as one of the most shoddily handled in recent times.
“How do we bring closure for the families of the victims who have waited so long? They set out on a business venture to improve their lot, and we cannot answer what happened to them. It is such negligent acts which give the justice sector a bad name and often the judiciary is left to blame,” said Justice Wendy Micheni.
In her ruling, in which she acquitted all the nine suspects regarding the murders of Sumra and Mohamed, Justice Micheni proposed a fresh look into how investigations are handled especially in high-profile cases.
The judge advised that the stakeholders should consider prosecution-led investigations otherwise justice will remain an illusion in certain cases.
“For now, Mr Karisa is acquitted in the three counts of murder. Robert Mwagosha Mganga is acquitted in the two counts of murder of Sumra and Mohamed, and convicted for the murder of Kazungu. May the souls of the departed rest in peace,” said Justice Micheni.
This ruling means that none of the nine suspects have been found guilty of killing Sumra and Mohamed. Court record shows that the post-mortem reports regarding these two were not produced in court.
Dr Gabriel Mugola who was to produce these reports started to give evidence and then he was stood down. He intimated that he had the wrong report, and he never returned. No other document was produced in respect to the deaths of these two.
The court observed that it was not in doubt that the deceased died from the encounter that they had that evening as there were no intervening circumstances such as medical negligence.
“From this, we find that there was an attack on the two Asians, by various people with multiple weapons and subsequently the bodies were set on fire. We are ,therefore, not able to say exactly what each accused person's role was. This is more so in respect to Mr Karisa . He is only said to have assisted,” said the judge.
The only conviction was that of Mganga, who was found guilty of Kazungu’s murder. Unlike the other victims, Kazungu’s death was documented. A death certificate, burial permit, and affidavit were presented in court, confirming his violent end. However, court was told he had converted to Islam so his family, adhering to Islamic customs, declined a post-mortem examination.
Two damning testimonies sealed Mganga’s fate. An eyewitness, testifying under a false name, Peter Kalaa, recounted the horror he stumbled upon. He saw the victims interrogated, their pleas ignored. He identified Mganga as the ringleader, the man who swung the first panga at Kazungu, sending him crumpling to the ground in a pool of blood.
“One of the Asians saw his life was in danger as he was surrounded, and he asked that he be allowed to pray before he is killed. Mganga urged the Asian to pray faster before he could be killed,” he said.
The witness testified that the Asian man was killed with machete and stones as soon as he finished praying.
“Mganga had a panga with which he used to cut the Asians .The vehicle was set ablaze as well,” said the witness.
Another witness, Emily Mgoi, a former employee at Mganga’s Club Signature, recalled her boss receiving a mysterious phone call before abruptly leaving. Soon after, chilling screams echoed from the direction he had taken.
Some men then came and asked them to close the club before Mganga returned later with the same message.
When Mganga returned to the club, he allegedly told the witness that he had interrogated Kazungu and two Asians about the purpose of their visit.
“He told us that one of the Asians had responded arrogantly and asked him if he knew who he was,” she said.
Mganga confided that he had paid Sh300 to have the bodies removed from his club. His irritation was evident when he later questioned why the bodies had been brought there in the first place.
But in his defence, he maintained that he was not at the crime scene, insisting he had merely stepped out to answer a call.
“When I returned, I found my employees closing the club. I enquired and they told me that some men had come and advised us to shut the club,” he said.
Justice Wendy concluded that Ms Mgoi’s evidence and that of Mr Kalaa placed Mganga right in the middle of the saga, and supports claims that he was the lead person in this attack.
“I am satisfied that the injuries that the deceased sustained are the ones which led to his death. Mganga struck him on the head with a panga and in fact, we are not told of anyone else attacking Kazungu. One can safely conclude that Kazungu died from the injuries inflicted by Mganga,” said the judge.
In her final remarks, Justice Micheni pointed out that the case goes down as one of the most poorly handled investigations and prosecution despite the government having spent a lot of resources on it.
The judge noted that she was sure that even with the acquittal of eight out of the nine accused persons, the residents of Junju village will forever remember the grisly murders and the subsequent events will forever be etched in their memory.
According to the judge, what was described as a multi-agency team, comprising the famed GSU , Regular and Administration police achieved little or nothing other than the might of the government that was seen and felt in Junju village for the next few months.
“ At the end of the exercise, 17 women and children were rounded up. Apart from the brutal force of rounding up hapless women and children and instilling the fear of the gods and the mighty hand of the law, it appears the multi-agency team achieved little or nothing,” said the Judge.
The judge noted that the evidence was not forthcoming, as most of the witnesses who came to court talked about the land dispute. Mganga is awaiting sentencing on February 19.
