On November 3, 2022, Police Constable Harrison Onywoki Onwonga, 30, left his workstation at the Ruiru Recce Squad Camp in Nairobi to attend his six-year-old son’s graduation in Nakuru County.
After the graduation ceremony at 5 pm, he proceeded to town to meet his brothers Hezron Onwong’a and Morara Onwong’a to watch a Fifa World Cup football match.
However, they were attacked by a gang of seven people as they went home. Mr Onywoki later succumbed to his injuries at the Nakuru Level Five hospital while receiving treatment.
Hezron said he arrived in Nakuru from Nairobi at 8 pm and joined Mr Onywoki at a restaurant in town where they decided to watch a football match as they waited for their other sibling who was still at work.
He said their brother Mr Morara, who works at a hotel within town, joined them at 10pm. After the football match, they opted to walk home.
However, upon reaching the stima-line within Mazembe area in Nakuru town west sub-county, they were accosted by a gang of seven people who were armed with crude weapons.
Hezron, who sustained head injuries said they picked Mr Onywoki and rushed him to Mother Kevin Hospital only to be turned away by a guard who insisted that they should produce a police abstract. They reported the attack at Kaptembwa Police station.
The officers rushed Mr Onywoki to Nakuru Level Five Hospital where he died at 5am. During the attack, Hezron said he was robbed of a mobile phone and Sh10,000.
“I have lost a dear brother. My dad passed away when he was five years old, we will miss him,” he said.
He added: “We thank the officers from Kaptembwa Police Station who helped us rush him to the hospital."
Mr Morara, who sustained injuries on both legs said that three people tied his hands from behind as the rest emptied his pockets. He lost two mobile phones, Sh150 and a jacket.
Ms Faith Kemunto, who is yet to come to the terms with her husband’s murder, said that after the graduation ceremony, her husband asked his friend to drop them home.
“He had to ask for permission to attend the graduation ceremony. Upon his arrival, I picked him up at the school gate and we proceeded to the graduation square together. We even discussed our son’s performance with his teacher,” she told Nation.Africa.
She described her husband of seven years as a loving man who always created time for his family despite his busy schedule.
“While at our son’s graduation ceremony, we took photos as a family not knowing that this would be our last moment together,” she said
Nakuru County Police Commander Peter Mwanzo said that they had recovered the officer’s phone. He said the signals of the other phones were last traced to Kwa Rhonda slums in Nakuru City.
Mr Mwanzo, who said that they had arrested three key suspects, regretted that the gang staged the attack after months of peace.
