Did he lock himself in a room and go without food, or was he starved by his captors, who later killed him? This is one of the puzzles police investigating the mysterious murder of Evans Muriithi are trying to unravel.
Another mystery is whether Muriithi, who was reportedly left alone in his room for four days, had any visitors. Some women's clothes were found in his room, who did they belong to?
A neighbour who lived next door said Muriithi had not left his house at Kiirua Shopping Centre in Buuri since he rented it on August 29.
Evans Murithi Hellen who was found dead in Meru shortly after arriving in the country from Dubai.
Photo credit: Courtesy
His body was discovered on the night of September 2, 2023 in what police initially thought was a suicide.
A post-mortem conducted at Nyambene Level Four Hospital mortuary on September 19 ruled out suicide and police are now investigating murder.
The neighbour, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said he noticed Muriithi’s door was open around 10pm on the fateful night, which was unusual.
“Since he rented the room the door had remained locked day and night so I was curious. I peeped inside. Nobody was in sight. After I called out and all I heard was dead silence, I decided to venture inside...into the bathroom...what I saw hit me like a thunderbolt,” he said.
Police are now burning the midnight oil to unravel the 28-year-old's mysterious murder. Detectives say that although there was no phone in the room, the Directorate of Criminal Investigations in Nairobi has mined data from Muriithi's phone number to trace his last contacts and what was discussed.
“We did not find his phone but records are there and when investigators get credible evidence we will arrest suspects,” said Kiirua East police boss Joseph Oduor.
At his home where he was buried, we met his mother, Hellen Nduma, who is still coming to terms with the death of her only son.
Ms Nduma described her son as "a hardworking man whose life was snuffed out by jealous people who did not want to see him progress" and prayed that "God sees the evil they had committed". The last time they spoke was around June this year, when he told her he would be visiting in September.
Speaking next to Muriithi's grave, Ms Nduma said her son set up his barber shop in Meru several years ago and later moved to Thika and Nairobi where his uncles live, mastering his art which led to him being hired to work in Dubai.
“From the time he started working, he loved his job. People thought he was not serious but when his skill took him to Dubai they started envying him. But God is seeing all those enemies who found it wise to kill my son. Why didn’t they take the money and let him live? That was cruel,” she said, occasionally wiping drops of tears from her sickly eyes.
“My only son, he has left me with two daughters. A generous and peace-loving man. Muri (a short form of his name) was a peacemaker in this home and if we quarrelled, he would always make sure we reconcile. Whoever killed my son was an agent of the devil…while I can’t pray for them to die, only God will avenge for the grief and pain they have caused me.”
Had she known her son was in Kiirua, about 15 kilometres from her home, she would have gone to fetch him.
“When he came home he used to call and ask me to cook some chapati for him. He loved them. He would say ‘mum, you know I love chapatis, please make some for me’. When his sister got concerned after she failed to reach him on phone she called me and asked whether Muriithi had come to eat chapati. I was not aware he was in Meru,” she narrated.
Ms Nduma revealed that she was not comfortable with him travelling to Dubai for fear that he would not come back alive.
“He sneaked out of the country after convincing his uncles who assured him they would explain everything to me. But when he called me saying he was fine and doing well and even sent me some money, I told him, 'Son, I have blessed you. Work hard and take care of your family.’ When we spoke in June, he told me he would come to celebrate the birth of his daughter (born a few months ago),” Ms Nduma added.
When news of Muriithi’s death broke on social media platform X (former Twitter), there were allegations that he had faked it. Concerned about the claims, Dr Githu Wachira, who is in charge of Nyambene Level Four hospital said he spoke to pathologist Dr Miriti Tirima, who confirmed that Muriithi had died.
“He confirmed that the same man whose photo was circulating on social media was the one whose body he conducted the postmortem on, complete with the dreadlocks,” Dr Wachira told Nation.Africa in a phone interview.
