Willis Ayieko murder: Seventh suspect arrested in Doho
The casket bearing the remains of the late Willis Ayieko during the burial service in Uhuru-Wuoroya village in Alego, Siaya County on November 09, 2024. Alex Odhiambo | Nation Media Group
What you need to know:
- The late Ayieko was reported missing on October 18, 2024, after attending a night vigil in Gem.
- His body was discovered on October 23, 2024, at the Mungowere stream that forms the boundary of Siaya and Kakamega counties.
The police in Siaya have arrested the seventh suspect in the murder of Wells Fargo Human Resources boss Willis Ayieko.
Working on an intelligence tip, police from Dudi Police Station arrested Samwel Owino Ongweso, 52, at the Doho area within Kisa West Location, Kakamega County.
“Today at around 1300hrs, police officers from Dudi Police Station and DCI Siaya, acting on an intelligence, managed to arrest one murder suspect namely Samwel Onyango Ongweso aged 52 at Doho area within Khisa West location,” stated a police incident report seen by Nation.
“The man is among those suspected to have been involved in the gruesome murder of Willis Ayieko Onyango, whose lifeless body was discovered having been dumped at Mungowere stream on 23/10/2024.”
The arrest of the seventh suspect comes just three days after Mr Ayieko was laid to rest at his rural home in Central Alego Location in Alego Usonga.
Courts have granted police and investigators 30 days to hold four other suspects as they probe the murder.
So far, five suspects are in police custody in connection to the murder, while two have died. They were a woman and a man who were involved in a shootout with police in Siaya.
The woman died while receiving treatment at Yala Sub-County Hospital, while the man was gunned down at a hide-out in Kisumu days after escaping with a bullet wound.
A section of leaders, who attended the burial ceremony, had registered reservations in the manner the authorities conducted investigations, claiming that the officials had begun inventing theories instead of bringing culprits to book.
“We shall accept nothing less than a conclusive investigation and solid findings into Ayieko's murder and not theories. Whatever is going on is making us suspect that there might be a bigger force stifling the investigations that are going on," said Alego Usonga MP Samuel Atandi.
Siaya Governor James Orengo also added his voice to the matter pointing out that previous cases of such kind went unresolved; like the Robert Ouko murder case, and JM Kariuki among others.
The late Ayieko was reported missing on October 18, 2024, after attending a night vigil in Gem.
His body was discovered on October 23, 2024, at the Mungowere stream that forms the boundary of Siaya and Kakamega counties.
A postmortem conducted on the body of Ayieko that was conducted before his burial revealed that he died from head injuries. The suspect will be arraigned in Siaya court later Wednesday.
