Mystery of two gangland style murders in Mirema and Utawala ‘linked to same gunmen’
The late Kevin Odhiambo (right) and his brother Alfred Odhiambo. Kevin was shot dead while his brother Alfred was abducted and is yet to be traced.
The gunmen who last Friday shot a man identified as Kevin Otieno 36 times in Mihang’o-Utawala in broad daylight as members of the public watched had on the previous night of Thursday shot dead two people along Mirema Drive in Kasarani, it has now emerged.
One of the men who was shot dead on that day had been identified as Mr David Ochieng Odera, 34, and the other man is yet to be identified.
When the Nation visited the scene where Mr Ochieng was shot dead in Mirema, witnesses said that the two men arrived at 11pm on Thursday driving a white Toyota Belta and parked it opposite Jifiche Bar which is located at the junction of Mirema Road and Lumumba Drive, near Pan-African University.
They said one of the men then proceeded to a nearby butchery and left the other one making a phone call while inside the white motor vehicle.
Moments later, a Probox car which was being driven by a woman approached the white car and parked beside the Toyota Belta.
“The two men then alighted and confronted the man who was busy making a call and demanded that they be given what they called mzigo (package). They told him that they will not let him eat alone,” a man who witnessed what transpired said.
It is then that the man who was by the butchery noticed the commotion, rushed to his motor vehicle, picked up a gun and shot at the two men as he tried to flee the scene.
However, he missed the target and as he was trying to flee the scene, the two men fired several bullets at the car killing the driver on the spot.
Was handcuffed
The other man was handcuffed and had been asked to lie on the ground. However, the two men went ahead and hailed several bullets at him as he pleaded for forgiveness.
The Nation spoke to a number of locals who said that the two men appeared to be new in the area and had requested that they are shown the direction towards Jifiche Bar.
“They did not know where Jifiche Bar was and they even asked for direction from us, we showed them where it is located and they left,” said a man who runs a business along Mirema Drive.
After the deadly shoot-out, the two men then made calls and police officers arrived at the scene just moments after they had left.
At the scene, four spent cartridges were recovered by the police officers and sleuths attached to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) in Kasarani police station.
Police sources say that the two gunmen, who were joined by four others driving in a grey double cabin pickup and a white land cruiser then, proceeded to the Maji Mazuri area in Mwiki where they raided Mr Alfred Ouma Obinya’s house.
Knocked at the door
They arrived at his house at 3am on Friday and knocked at the door of Mr Obinya, 29, before they handcuffed him.
His wife, who exclusively spoke to the Nation, said that the gunmen kept on asking her husband who has since gone missing to give them a firearm which they insisted he had.
The Nation has obtained CCTV footage which captured the men who were wearing caps, masks and bulletproof vests harassing Mr Obinya.
Later in the day, the six proceeded to the house of Ms Evelyn Nduku who was the girlfriend of the late Mr Kevin Otieno and also picked her up. Ms Nduku, just like Mr Obinya, has not been seen since then.
They arrived at Ms Nduku’s house a few minutes before midday and left with her after they ransacked her house.
A man who witnessed what transpired said that the gunmen did not ask for directions to her house but just proceeded to the fifth floor and left with her.
“The gunmen appeared to be searching for something that they did not manage to get from her house. They then covered her face, bundled her inside the land cruiser and left,” said the man who spoke in confidence due to the sensitivity of the matter.
In broad daylight after cornering him
At around 2pm on Friday, the gunmen proceeded to Mihang’o in Utawala where they shot Mr Otieno in broad daylight after cornering him.
Mr Otieno was waylaid a few meters from his rented apartment where he was making a call. Witnesses say he had made a call for over 30 minutes.
People who were near the scene of the crime said that the gunmen then demanded that they (witnesses) hand over their mobile phones which they shot at several times.
Police sources, CCTV footage and interviews with witnesses point to the same gunmen involved in both incidents.
Kayole Sub County Police Commander Mr Paul Wambugu confirmed that indeed the Utawalaa incident happened on Friday.
"Investigations are ongoing to establish the motive behind it and to apprehend those behind it,” he said.
