Kalani Muema went missing in Mlolongo in December 2024 alongside his three friends.
Investigations into abduction of four men from Mlolongo last December has taken new twist after investigations revealed that one of the missing two was in possession of multiple mobile phones lines not registered in his name.
Following the development, the investigations team headed by Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) deputy director in charge of investigations Paul Wachira has summoned four people whose identity cards were used to register the four numbers linked to the missing abductee, Kalani Muema.
Muema went missing in December alongside his friends Stephen Kavingo, Justus Mutumwa, Martin Mwau and, for nearly 40 days, their families have been looking for them in vain.
Mutumwa’s and Mwau’s bodies has since been found at the Nairobi Funeral Home, with investigation underway to establish the circumstances behind their deaths.
Detectives told the Nation that they had blown the cases open, with a view of drawing profiles and establishing business dealings and relationships of the slain and missing men.
One of the individuals, whose personal details, including the ID number, was used by Muema to register a line, has been confirmed to be one of his uncles.
Three other individuals, whose IDs were used to register the phone numbers, have been confirmed to be individuals who had lost their identity cards.
The four of the individuals, whose details were used, have been summoned to record statements with investigators at DCI headquarters on Kiambu Road this week.
Mr Wachira last week appeared in court alongside his bosses, DCI chief Mohammed Amin and Inspector-General of police Douglas Kanja, to give an update on the status of investigations into the missing men’s cases.
On December 26, 2024, he told the court that Ms Susan Muema reported to the police that her brother Kalani was missing on December 12, 2024.
He further told the court that the DCI had engaged witnesses, service providers and private entities to help with information that would help the police unravel the abduction.
“Along the process, we encountered certain challenges of witness not willing to provide information and have to go the legal way,” Mr Wachira said in court.
On Sunday, an officer privy to the investigations told the Nation that the investigations were moving on at a slow pace after some of the relatives declined to volunteer information to the police.
The detective who spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to issue Press statements told the Nation that police were yet to confirm what the slain and missing men did for a living.
“We have heard that some of them were businessmen but when the police probe further, these relatives decline to give these details that are crucial to the investigations,” said the officer.
Human rights activist Hussein Khalid, who has been closely following this case, told the Nation that two of them men were traders in Mlolongo while the third one was a boda boda rider in the same area.
According to Khalid, one of the men hawked shoes while another one sold bags in Mlolongo.
The Nation reached out to the National Police Service, through spokesperson Muchiri Nyaga, who confirmed that at least four individuals whose details were used to register the cellphone lines held by one of the men had been summoned to record statements with the DCI.
Mr Muchiri, however, declined to comment on how far the investigations had gone.
“We just want to hear from them (those whose details were used). Let us know why their details were used to register these lines and their use,” he told the Nation on phone.
This comes as human rights groups plan a postmortem exam on the bodies of three men who have been identified at the Nairobi Funeral Home.
Khalid, who is among the individuals who have seen the bodies at the mortuary, told the Nation that the victims had what appeared to be torture marks on their faces and hands.
“You can tell that they were tortured and even brutalised. One of them has a swollen face and the hands have marks that show they could have been handcuffed,” Mr Khalid said.
