Body of missing Kirinyaga businessman recovered in Sagana River
A Kirinyaga businessman, Samuel Kamau, 41, who went missing after his vehicle plunged into the Sagana River. His body was recovered in Sagana River by KDF divers.
What you need to know:
- The KDF divers retrieved the body which was then taken to the mortuary.
- However, his vehicle, Nissan Double Cabin is yet to be recovered.
The search for a businessman who went missing after his car plunged into the flooding Sagana River in Kirinyaga county ended Sunday after Kenya Defence Forces divers found his body.
The decomposing body of the businessman, Samuel Kamau, 41, was spotted floating, two kilometres from where he drowned.
The KDF divers retrieved the body which was then taken to the mortuary.
However, his vehicle, Nissan Double Cabin is yet to be recovered.
Kirinyaga West Sub-county police boss Mr Moses Koskei thanked the residents for assisting in the search mission.
On May 2, Kamau disappeared under unclear circumstances, forcing the family members and police to embark on a thorough search of him.
Later, KDF soldiers from the Disaster Response Battalion joined in the mission but suspended the search efforts due to the speed of the water in the river whose banks had burst due to heavy rains pounding the region.
The operation witnessed by Kirinyaga County Commissioner Allasow Hussein, and other senior security officers as well as scores of residents halted to allow the drivers to acquire sophisticated machinery.
On Sunday the divers resumed the operation and spotted the body of the trader who was well known in Sagana and Kagio areas where he carried out his businesses floating in water after nine days.
Kamau, a son of Kagio tycoon, the late Peter Kagwanja was travelling home from the neighbouring Murang'a County at around 11 pm when he got into the accident which left the family reeling in shock.
Before the accident, Kamau had been spotted in a social place with friends, according to the family.
The family recounted how Kamau left Murang'a to see a friend in Sagana, his home area.
Read: One week later, Kirinyaga trader's body still not retrieved from river
As he headed to Sagana he called his friend and he continued talking to him on the phone as he drove his vehicle...suddenly Kamau screamed once and his phone went off, his sister Grace Wambui reported.
Wambui said his brother's friend had recorded a statement with the police.
"When my brother failed to arrive in Sagana as he had promised and his phone went off suddenly, his friend became suspicious that something was amiss and he travelled to Murang'a to look for him but he didn't find him," explained Wambui.
It was then that his friend reported the matter to Sagana police station and recorded a statement.
A piece of metal believed to be part of the vehicle was found at the scene of the accident.
Read: Shock as lone gunman kills city trader as his family watches
"It appears as if my brother 's vehicle hit something before it went flying into the river because a piece of metal suspected to be that of his car was found at the scene," said Ms Wambui who described her brother as a good and hardworking man whose death left the family baffled.
"The family and area residents loved him so much, he was very social," she said.
The family said they will now embark on funeral preparations to give their loved one a decent sendoff.
