Shocked residents at Mugaya area in Kirinyaga county where a man was found murdered and dumped in a coffee farm.
On the evening of March 8, 2025, Stanley Mwangi ,40, went to Mugaya market in Kirinyaga County after spending the day working on his farm.
He reportedly entered a bar and ordered his favourite drink and enjoyed it as he talked with friends and other patrons, oblivious of the fate awaiting him.
According to the family, Mwangi left home at Kiamutuira village in Kirinyaga Central Constituency on a Saturday, saying he was going to unwind after a tiring day at work. That was the last time he was seen alive.
After having drinks, Mwangi was seen leaving the bar at around 11pm while in the company of his friends who are well-known in the area.
It is not clear how and at what point a fight among the men erupted, in which Mwangi was fatally attacked and his body dumped on a coffee farm.
The prime suspects in the gruesome murder are his two close friends.
The family said Mwangi was beaten to death as he was walking home at night after drinking alcohol with his friends.
They said Mwangi was eliminated just a few metres from home and abandoned lying in a pool of blood.
"We heard him scream for help and rushed to the scene but we came across two men fleeing. On looking around we saw Mwangi lying dead," said Mr Charles Muthii, the brother of the deceased.
The family said it was likely Mwangi had engaged in a bitter argument with the suspects over unknown reasons as they walked home before he was brutally murdered.
"I suspect there was a row that led to a beating, resulting in the death. We want to know why our beloved brother was killed in such a brutal manner," said Mr Muthii.
The family, which has been thrown into mourning, called on detectives to get to the bottom of the matter.
"Those who murdered our brother are well known and they should be brought to book," added Mr Muthii.
The family said Mwangi had serious head injuries, a clear indication that he was attacked by the assailants with blunt objects.
Kirinyaga Central police boss John Torori said investigations into the murder had commenced and asked the family to be patient.
Already, one of the suspects has been arrested and is being held at Kerugoya police station while the second one is being pursued, he said.
"We flushed him out from his hideout and he is being questioned. The second suspect is still at large and we will make sure he is apprehended," said Mr Torori.
He assured the family that the police would not rest until all the culprits were exposed and prosecuted.
The police boss said the body of the deceased is lying at Kerugoya referral hospital mortuary, pending postmortem examination.
Residents lamented it was sad they had lost one of their own and called on the Directorate of Criminal Investigations to have the matter thoroughly investigated and those implicated punished in accordance with the law.
"Life is sacred, no one is supposed to take it away and those who murdered Mwangi should not be spared," one of the residents Mr Manegene Njungu said.
The family described Mwangi as a humble person who related well with his friends and residents.
"Mwangi was a good man and we don't know why his friends turned against him. We suspect there might have been an unresolved dispute among them," another family member said.
