Edward Mutilangi, a brother of former Pepsi Cola Director William Mulwa, who died in New York on October 16, 2023, during an interview at Nation Centre on January 13, 2024.
For most of 2024, the family of William Alfred Mutilangi Mulwa, a senior manager at US conglomerate Pepsi Cola who died in 2023, has been in a cat-and-mouse game with the Foreign Affairs ministry, seeking assistance to travel to New York, the nexus point of mysteries sparked by their kin’s death.
The Mutilangi family nominated their last born, Edward, to travel to New York mainly for three reasons – retrieve the former Pepsi Cola manager’s ashes, participate in succession proceedings before a US court and follow up on an FBI investigation which is intended to determine whether he was murdered.
To secure a visa appointment at the US Embassy, Edward needs a support letter from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs indicating who he is and the reason for his travel to New York.
The Foreign Affairs ministry is under Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi.
After numerous failed attempts to secure an appointment with Mr Mudavadi, Edward sought the assistance of government spokesperson Isaac Mwaura.
Dr Mwaura wrote to Mr Mudavadi on June 7, 2024, requesting that the Prime Cabinet Secretary intervenes and issues Edward the support letter.
The government spokesperson attached William’s death certificate, letters from York Town Funeral Home where the ashes lie, court papers in the US succession case and Edward’s passport details.
“Investigations have been opened by the FBI to ascertain the circumstances leading to his death and a succession case has also been filed in the US, for the administration of his estate. Mr Edward Mutilangi, who is the representative of the deceased in Kenya, seeks to travel to the US to participate in both proceedings. It is also the family’s wish that they bring back the remains of Mr Alfred Mutilangi to Kenya, for a decent burial according to their cultural rights,” Dr Mwaura said in the correspondence.
A four-bedroom house built by the late former Pepsi Cola director William Mutilangi (inset) at the family compound in Masii, Machakos County. His family believe there was foul play in his death, citing numerous inconsistencies in the death certificate.
“Mr Edward Mutilangi’s visa application to the US has however been denied for lack of supporting documentation from the government of Kenya. This letter is therefore to request your office to support Mr Edward Mutilangi with a visa support letter to facilitate his visa application and envisaged travel to the US,” Dr Mwaura further said in the letter.
Six months later, nothing.
Succession case
William’s assets in the US are at risk of being forfeited to the government, his ashes still lay in Yorktown Funeral Home with storage charges rising, and the succession case in New York is in limbo.
Desperate to get help from the Foreign Affairs ministry, Edward resorted to seeking assistance from people who claim to have good rapport with either Mr Mudavadi or his close aides.
Some, Edward claims, have asked for facilitation fees and disappeared shortly after making a quick buck.
“I have lost a lot of money to people claiming to know Mr Mudavadi’s close aides, as they promised to help me get an appointment with the Prime CS. They ask for facilitation for the aides and then nothing.
It has just been promise after promise,” Edward said in a phone interview on Thursday. Known mobile phone numbers for Mr Mudavadi were off on Friday when we attempted to call. The Prime Cabinet Secretary did not respond to our text and WhatsApp messages querying why the Foreign Affairs ministry has not been able to issue Edward with a support letter.
William died on October 16, 2023, at the North Westchester Restorative Therapy and Nursing Centre in New York, two days after being driven to the facility by two individuals.
One of them, a woman, identified herself as Mary Mutilangi, while the second said he was Peter Githinji.
The real Mary Mutilangi was at the time in Masii, Machakos County.
William’s remains were transferred to Yorktown Funeral Home.
A few after days William died, 35-year-old Tanzanian national Bakari Kisalu Malanda made a move on his assets, claiming to be the Pepsi Cola manager’s son.
Two days before William was cremated, Bakari wrote to Lloyd Masika, which manages some of William’s houses along Mombasa road, through his lawyers Kahuthu & K Advocates.
Bakari told the property management firm not to reveal any information or records to anyone who would ask.
Power of attorney
On October 24, 2023, Bakari executed a power of attorney – a legal authorisation allowing a designated individual to make decisions on behalf of the document’s executor – in favour of Peter Githinji, the man who had checked William into the North Westchester Restorative Therapy and Nursing Centre.
The power of attorney was prepared by Kahuthu & K Advocates proprietor, Jimmy Kahuthu.
It allowed Githinji to order William’s cremation without a postmortem, and to consolidate the former Pepsi manager’s assets in the US.
Two days after the power of attorney was executed, another US-based individual called William’s family in Kenya to notify them of the death.
Japheth Ndambuki called William’s brother Vincent and broke the news. He told Vincent that William had died at Hudson Valley Hospital, and that his remains were at Yonkers Funeral Home – Ndambuki gave the family wrong information.
Ndambuki added that he did not have much information, but that the family should contact Githinji.
Githinji told Edward and Vincent that he had instructions from his lawyer, Jimmy Kahuthu, not to reveal any information to anyone.
Kahuthu had also written to Yorktown Funeral Home, instructing them not to reveal any information to anyone who came asking.
The funeral home declined to reveal information to Edward and Vincent, stating that a lawyer representing William’s “son” had instructed the institution to keep mum.
Confused by the turn of events, the funeral home opted to cling onto William’s death certificate.
Bakari then wrote, through Kahuthu, to Yorktown Funeral Home demanding that it releases the death certificate to him. He threatened to sue the funeral home.
At the time, Bakari had occupied William’s house in Greenpark Estate, Athi River after introducing himself to the property’s managers as the Pepsi manager’s son.
William owned three houses in Greenpark, and had rented one out. The rented unit was managed by Ark Real Estate.
Kahuthu wrote to Ark Real Estate, asking them to withhold rental income until getting further instructions.
Through Kahuthu, Bakari also threatened to evict the tenants.
Ark Real Estate is still withholding the rental income, pending conclusion of succession proceedings and the appointment of an administrator, or a court order directing it to release the funds to a specific individual or institution.
Edward and Vincent filed a complaint with the DCI against Bakari and Kahuthu.
The initial investigations pointed fingers at Kahuthu. On February 15, 2024 Bakari was charged with meddling with a deceased person’s estate. After initially claiming to be a biological son, Bakari shifted gears in his DCI statement, which is now evidence in court, by saying William adopted him in 2019, when he was 30-years-old after meeting in Tanzania.
Dissatisfied with what they insist was selective prosecution and shoddy investigations, the Mutilangis wrote to Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Renson Ingonga.
They claimed that Kahuthu was the mastermind based on the investigations, but was not charged.
They were also unhappy that Bakari was not charged with forgery and uttering a false document, as the Tanzanian had based his claim on a Will in which he was listed as William’s son and sole heir to the multimillion-shilling estate.
On October 31, 2024, the DPP’s office responded to the Mutilangis, stating that Mr Ingonga has ordered further investigations after perusing the investigation file. Mr Ingonga will give further directions afterwards.
On Friday, Kahuthu picked our call to his known mobile phone number, but disconnected when we introduced ourselves.
In response to our queries on whether he is aware of the further investigations ordered by the DPP and whether he is aware of investigations in the US, Kahuthu said he is in the process of suing the Nation Media Group.
Githinji in a past interview said that he picked several documents from William’s townhouse in New York, and also took his BMW SUV. Githinji said he will only surrender the documents to the courts when succession starts.
He claimed to have gotten involved seven days after William’s death, when Kahuthu asked him to arrange for the former Pepsi executive’s cremation and funeral.
Despite saying he had never met, talked with or seen William, Githinji claimed that the ex-Pepsi boss and his siblings were not on talking terms.
