It began with a gesture of kindness — a helping hand, a promise of support and comforting words to a vulnerable mother in her moment of greatest need— but ended in heartbreak and the disappearance of her newborn.
On July 27, at around 3 pm, nine-months-pregnant Zainab Mwamini Juma began experiencing labour pains.
Seeking divine intervention, she went to a pastor’s house in Mazara in Likoni, Mombasa County, for prayers.
In the wee hours of the next day, about 3 am, she delivered a healthy baby boy at the pastor’s house.
Ms Juma was later rushed to Mrima Maternity Hospital for further care. There, her hospital bill quickly rose to Sh6,600 — an amount she could not afford to pay before discharge.
Struggling to find a solution, Ms Juma confided in a nurse at the hospital who introduced her to a woman named Harriet Imali, described as a “sponsor” willing to settle the bill. The nurse even provided her with Imali’s contact details.
“Ms Juma communicated with Ms Imali, who assured her that the bill would be settled,” reads part of her police statement seen by Nation .
Imali later visited Ms Juma in the hospital, promising not only to clear the bill but also to rent her a house and buy household items. To Ms Juma — who had been staying with a friend after her release from prison — the offer felt like a lifeline.
A picture of the Mombasa Law Courts| Pool
Photo credit: Pool
That same day, upon her discharge, Ms Imali escorted her to Ujamaa, where she was shown a freshly rented one-room house. Imali, bought her a mattress, food, baby clothes and other household necessities.
On July 31, Ms Juma decided to collect her remaining belongings from her friend’s house. She informed Ms Imali, who promised to send people to run the errand. Soon after, two boda boda riders and another woman arrived at her new home.
“I boarded one of the boda bodas while the lady, who offered to carry my baby, boarded the other. We then set off for Mazara,” Ms Juma told police.
But along the way, the boda boda carrying the woman and her baby changed route. The rider, who was supposed to be following Ms Juma veered off and disappeared.
Efforts to trace them proved futile. Distraught, Ms Juma reported the matter to Inuka Police Station under Occurrence Book number 24/02/08/2025.
Inspector Daniel Njoroge launched investigations leading to the arrest of Ms Imali on August 4 in the Mrima B area. She later led police to the home of her alleged accomplice, Linda Karea Kirimana, in the same neighbourhood where a male infant was recovered and positively identified by Ms Juma as her stolen child.
In an affidavit filed in court, Inspector Njoroge revealed that Imali was a volunteer with the community health promoters attached to Mrima Maternity Hospital.
“During interrogation, Ms Imali revealed that Ms Karea had requested her to find a child, offering to pay Sh30,000 as she had never borne any children,” the officer said.
Investigations further revealed that Ms Karea had paid the hospital bill, rented the one-room house, purchased the household items and orchestrated the plan to steal the baby. She allegedly sent the money to Ms Imali to carry out the scheme. Police also recovered three mobile phones from the two women as exhibits.
“The investigation team needs time to carry out DNA analysis to confirm whether the recovered baby is indeed Ms Juma’s child. We also need to trace the respondents’ accomplices and arrest them using forensic communication data records (CDR) analysis,” Inspector Njoroge told the court.
The police also sought time to forward the mobile phones to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations’ Forensic Laboratory for analysis.
Through State Counsel Barbara Sombo, the police expressed fear for the safety of Ms Juma and other witnesses should the suspects be released on bond before investigations are complete.
“The respondents are flight risks as their places of abode are yet to be firmly established. If released on bond, it would hinder investigations,” Mr Njoroge said.
Senior Resident Magistrate David Odhiambo granted police 15 days to detain the suspects at Likoni Police Station to allow the completion of investigations.
