Joseph Mutemi, the 14-year-old boy who was hacked to death by suspected camel herders at Ukasi in Kitui County on Tuesday, had helped his would-be killers quench their thirst shortly before he met his death, the Nation has established.
The Grade 7 learner at Kathungu Primary School had missed school to help his grandmother produce charcoal when he encountered the attackers.
Dorcas Wanza, whose son Joseph Mutemi was hacked to death by suspected camel herders at the Ukasi region in Kitui County on April 28, during an interview with Nation at Katangini Village in Kitui County on May 1, 2026.
Photo credit: Pius Maundu | Nation
Mutemi’s mother, Dorcas Wanza, a waitress at a restaurant in Kitui Town, was inconsolable when a Nation team visited the homestead at Katangini Village.
“Mutemi was my first-born. He was my only source of hope since I am a widow. I am appealing for justice,” she said.
It is Mutemi’s grandmother, Nthambi Munywoki, who recalled his last moments.
“One of the two attackers, a short and stout man, is well known in this region. He is a camel herder,” Ms Munywoki said, citing accounts from the boys who had accompanied him to set up a charcoal kiln.
The Nation has established that the attackers initially interacted cordially with the boys. They engaged in small talk and borrowed water, which Mutemi provided.
“They disappeared for some time and came back to continue with the small talk,” Ms Munywoki recalled.
Suddenly, she said, one of the camel herders struck Mutemi with a machete on the head, sending the other boys scampering for safety as they raised the alarm.
Mutemi’s killing became a focal point at a peace rally convened on Thursday by Kitui Governor Julius Malombe and his Garissa counterpart Nathif Jama.
Kitui County Commissioner Erastus Mbui said Mutemi’s killing brought the number of people killed in similar incidents in the region bordering Tana River County this week to eight.
In all, a total of 15 people from Kitui and Tana River counties have been killed in conflicts involving farmers and camel herders since March 29, including Mutemi and seven people killed at Kwani Kamari in the same region on Saturday.
Dorcas Wanza, whose son Joseph Mutemi was hacked to death by suspected camel herders at the Ukasi region in Kitui County on April 28, meets Kitui Governor Julius Malombe (centre) and Garissa Governor Nathif Jama during a peacebuilding forum at Nguni Township in Kitui County on April 30, 2026. The region has similarly lost eight people this week.
Photo credit: Pius Maundu | Nation
Calls for swift arrests dominated the forum, which was also addressed by Garissa County Commissioner Mohamed Mwabudzo at Nguni Township.
Speakers at the forum struck a reconciliatory tone as they sought to defuse tensions that have rocked the two neighbouring counties since Saturday, when suspected camel herders gunned down seven people in the Kwa Kamari region of Kitui County.
“On behalf of the people of Garissa County, we are truly sorry for all the atrocities, attacks and deaths visited upon you by rogue elements from our side,” Mr Jama told the peace-building forum, echoing sentiments by nominated MP Umulkheir Harun Mohammed and Garissa Majority Leader Abdi Farah.
Some bus companies that ply the Garissa–Nairobi highway, which had suspended services since Tuesday citing insecurity, resumed operations yesterday, signalling a return to normalcy in a region that has endured days of protests triggered by Mutemi’s death.
The protests disrupted business in Garissa, Mwingi and Nairobi, and highlighted conflicts over pasture and water between farmers in Kitui County and camel herders from Tana River County.
Mr Mbui said security agencies were closing in on suspects after impounding 110 camels allegedly found near the scene of the boy’s killing.
“We believe the owner of the camels knows the criminals behind the killing of the boy,” he said.
Dorcas Wanza, whose son Joseph Mutemi was hacked to death by suspected camel herders at the Ukasi region in Kitui County on April 28, during an interview with Nation at Katangini Village in Kitui County on May 1, 2026.
Photo credit: Pius Maundu | Nation
Mutemi’s killing came barely two days after suspected camel herders gunned down seven residents in the Kwa Kamari region of Tseikuru Sub-county.
The deaths of Kilonzo Kauni, Mulandi Kauni, Mutua Kituo, Syengo Mwangangi, Damaris Matei, Nicholas Muthi Syengo and Tito Munywoki Muthi have heightened tensions along the Kitui–Tana River border.
The conflicts often begin when camel herders lease land in Kitui County to sustain their animals, but tensions arise when the animals stray into neighbouring farmlands.
Security agencies believe the killing of the seven residents was a retaliatory attack following the deaths of camel herders Musa Abdirahaman Ahmed, Abdi, Diakane and Mohammed Aden Ahmed, who were allegedly killed by farmers on March 30.
The killing of Stephen Kyalo Kimwele, a farmer, on March 29 is said to have triggered the cycle of violence.
“We are going to disarm camel herders,” Mr Mbui said.
“Kitui County has coexisted peacefully with Northern Kenya for centuries. We should not allow a few rogue individuals to destroy the brotherhood and good neighbourliness,” he said, as Mwingi East Sub-County Commissioner Martin Mureithi directed chiefs to document details of camel owners and herders to prevent further attacks.
The latest wave of conflict comes amid rising ethnic tensions in Garissa Town linked to the killing of a taxi driver allegedly by a police officer.
“We have arrested and charged a person in Garissa who incited one community against another,” Mr Mwabudzo said, referring to Bare Sahara Ahmed.
“We are also looking for the police officer who has since gone into hiding,” he added.
Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka joined leaders from North Eastern Kenya in calling for an end to retaliatory attacks.
A security forum convened last year by Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen identified conflicts between farmers and camel herders as the biggest security threat in Kitui County.
To address the problem, the government has enlisted 250 National Police Reservists, while the Kitui County government has set up five police stations along the volatile border, two of which have already been commissioned.
“Initially, Kwa Kamari had three police officers and 27 National Police Reservists. We have since deployed 70 police officers and 57 reservists and provided them with a vehicle to enhance patrols,” he said.
A National Assembly committee has also recommended improving telecommunication systems along the Kitui–Tana River border to enhance response to bandit attacks.
