The police have clarified that the Lopha matatu captured in photos doing rounds on social media for allegedly being involved in Nahashon Ng’ang’a’s fatal accident at Ruiru bypass was actually the vehicle that rushed him to Kenyatta University Teaching, Referral and Research Hospital.
They are currently investigating the circumstances under which Ng’ang’a, whose photo went viral as he bled profusely after falling off a speeding matatu early Sunday morning on Thika Road, sustained injuries and eventually died on Wednesday afternoon.
Ng’ang’a was a well-known tout working for Lopha Sacco, plying the Nairobi-Ruiru route, and always reported on duty as a conductor beginning Friday morning until Sunday afternoon.
On Sunday morning, Ng’ang’a fell off a speeding matatu heading towards Ruiru from Nairobi on the Thika Superhighway. The matatu, which is yet to be identified, sped off and the police launched a search for it. They have asked anyone who witnessed the accident to report the matter at Ruiru Police Station.
The Nation has also established that Ng’ang’a lived in Sabasaba village, Murang’a county, with his mother, Ms Mary Wangu, where he had moved back a year ago after life become unbearable in Mathare slums, Nairobi, where he was a hawker and tout. So tough was life that he separated from his wife. Together, they had two children.
“He left here (Sabasaba) on Friday for Nairobi, where he was working three times a week as a tout with Lopha Sacco. On Saturday evening, he called me and told me that all was okay and that he would be coming back home on Monday after ending his work shift on Sunday evening. That is the last time I heard from him,” Ms Wangu tearfully told Nation in an interview.
Hours later, she received a phone call from a stranger informing her of the accident and that her son was seriously hurt.
The distraught mother called her older son, Daniel Waweru, and asked him to rush to Ruiru bypass. Mr Waweru went to the scene but found his brother had been taken to hospital, where he found him in pain, but being attended to. He called his mother and updated her.
“I could hear him groaning in pain. I could feel my son was in pain. It pained me deeply. I was told that the good Samaritans rushed him to the hospital where he later died. I have lost my son. He was my eleventh child. I have previously lost two sons and now him, then add their father. In total, I have lost four family members. I would appreciate justice for my son. It is painful,” said Ms Wangu.
Reports indicate that Ng’ang’a had a falling out with the driver of the Lopha matatu he worked in as a conductor over the money they had collected on Saturday. They quarrelled on Saturday night, and the row spilt over to Sunday morning in Nairobi where they exchanged words.
However, the police have ruled out the driver as a suspect because he was left in town when Ng’ang’a went to Ruiru on that fateful trip. That was the last time he saw Ng’ang’a, the driver told the police.
Ruiru Sub-County Police Commander Alex Shikondi said officers received an initial report of a hit-and-run on Sunday morning and a team was sent to the scene to process it.
Ng’ang’a had already been taken to hospital in the Lopha matatu, which the police impounded, but later on released after realising it had saved him instead.
“The driver of that Lopha matatu being accused of having pushed the deceased is the one who stopped because he recognised Ng’ang’a and rushed him to hospital.
“We found the victim, now the deceased, in hospital and the doctor told us we could not see him because he had sustained serious injuries. We had hoped to get more information from the deceased when he eventually got better, but unfortunately, he passed on,” said Mr Shikondi.
Ng’ang’a had arrived at the hospital in a critical condition. At around 1 pm, he struggled with breathing and was taken to the ICU, where he stayed for three days until his death at 1 pm, Wednesday.
“Until now, we do not know the matatu he was in or who pushed him or even whether he was pushed or fell. We have only heard from the public that he was pushed, but as a family, we do not have any details. We hope the police will help us find that matatu and whoever was operating it so that justice prevails,” Mr Waweru told the Nation .
A post-mortem will be conducted tomorrow (Friday) at the hospital, and the burial is planned for Tuesday next week in Sabasaba village.
