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Evans Thiongo (right) of Metropolitan Nairobi and Jacob Oyoko (also inset) of Kisumu during a National Boxing League bantam weight bout in Mombasa in on April 6, 2012.
On Thursday, March 26, Jacob Oyoko received a call from organisers of a boxing event in Mumias, Kakamega County. The call came as he was preparing to travel to Mombasa, from his base in Kisumu, for a Linda Mwananchi security assignment.
Mr Oyoko, widely known in boxing circles by his ring name “Spoiler”, was working as a private security officer and a part-time amateur boxer.
According to his cousin George Michura, the 36-year-old had initially planned to join a team providing security at a political rally in Mombasa. However, upon receiving the call from the organisers, he abandoned the Mombasa trip and stepped into the ring.
“I strongly objected to his decision. I cautioned him against it, noting that he had been out of the ring for some time and had not undergone proper preparation for such a bout, which had been arranged on short notice,” recalls Mr Michura.
The late Jacob Oyoko.
After a lengthy discussion, Mr Oyoko reportedly told his cousin that he would reconsider. However, he ultimately went ahead and fought and never returned home alive.
Born in 1988 in Uyoma, Rarieda Sub-County of Siaya, Mr Oyoko was the firstborn in his family. He lost his father three years ago and leaves behind his mother, a wife and two children.
His path had not been easy. Financial hardship forced him out of school in Form Two, denying him the chance to sit his Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education examinations. Undeterred, he moved to Kisumu in search of opportunity, first living with a relative before finding his footing. He later trained as an electrician, a trade that sustained him even as he pursued a long-held passion that refused to dim: boxing.
Even while working as an electrician and later as a private security officer, the ring remained central to his identity. Friends and training partners remember a man driven not by structure or sponsorship, but by sheer love for the sport - training where he could, as he could.
Mr Michura describes him as more than family, his closest confidant. The nickname “Spoiler”, he explains, was born not in the ring but in generosity.
“He would say, ‘I want to spoil you,’ meaning he wanted to buy food in large quantities for friends. That is how the name stayed.”
Though he had left school early, Mr Oyoko held onto a burning ambition of joining the Kenya Defence Forces, as several of his peers had done. Boxing, for him, was not merely a pursuit of passion, but a discipline and a possible gateway to a different future.
His journey in the sport included multiple amateur bouts and modest accolades. About four years ago, he competed in Machakos and won a trophy, adding to a growing collection of certificates earned across local contests. However, the circumstances surrounding his final fight have since cast a long and troubling shadow.
Lack of preparation
Fellow boxer David Omollo Mau recounts how Mr Oyoko received a short notice call on Thursday, informing him that fighters were needed for a bout in Mumias, with the ring reportedly sourced from Kisumu. Mr Mau declined the invitation, citing lack of preparation.
“Boxing requires intense training, you cannot just call fighters and put them in a ring,” he warns.
He questions why Mr Oyoko, who was an amateur boxer, was selected to compete in a professional fight.
“When did he turn professional? We don’t even have structured coaching in Kisumu boxing,” he notes that participants were reportedly offered Sh5,000 each.
On Saturday, Mr Oyoko stepped into the ring at the Mumias Cultural Centre. Other Kisumu-based boxers, including Freddy and Ben, also took part, while Mr Mau travelled instead to Mombasa for the security assignment Mr Oyoko had declined.
Witness accounts and widely circulated video footage show Mr Oyoko enduring a punishing sequence of blows from his opponent, Julius “Faya” Okuruchi, during a super lightweight contest. The referee eventually halted the fight in the second round of the scheduled four-round bout, declaring Okuruchi the winner by technical knockout.
Moments after leaving the ring, Mr Oyoko reportedly collapsed.
He was rushed to Mumias Level Four Hospital, where he later died while receiving treatment.
A post-mortem examination would reveal the cruel finality of that night: acute lung injury caused by blunt force trauma sustained during the match.
In the wake of his death, grief has given way to difficult questions. Within the boxing fraternity and beyond, concerns have sharpened around athlete safety standards, matchmaking procedures, and the adequacy of emergency preparedness at local events.
Activist and friend Olga Atieno says Mr Oyoko had shown no signs of illness prior to the bout.
“We want justice for our friend. There was no indication he was unwell. We need clarity on whether proper procedures were followed in organising that fight,” she says.
Promoter John “Pope” Wakungui, however, maintains that all safety protocols had been observed, stating that the bout was sanctioned and that medical personnel were present at ringside. He adds that Mr Oyoko received immediate attention before being transferred to hospital.
Officials from the Kenya Professional Boxing Council have since confirmed that emergency protocols were activated following the incident, and that an independent investigation committee has been established to examine the circumstances surrounding the fight.
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