Nairobi News

A father in Nairobi is struggling to come to terms with the brutal murder of his son who succumbed to injuries he sustained in a robbery incident in Dandora on Jamhuri Day.

The bad news in itself was delivered in the worst possible way after the father received a call to go and identify his his 22-year-old son at Mama Lucy Kibaki Hospital.

But when the father, Sylvester Owino, arrived at the facility he was shocked to find the lifeless body of his son in the morgue.

“I received a call from Mama Lucy Kibaki Hospital on Tuesday to go to there and after identifying myself they took me to the morgue and told me to identify my son,” Mr Owino said.

The father added that there was nothing much he was told by the police, with the hospital staff only telling him that his son died while undergoing treatment.

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According to police, the deceased was admitted at the facility on Monday evening after residents of Dandora Phase Two reported that one Flavian Orinde was found by the roadside with stab wounds in the face.

He was rushed to the hospital where he succumbed to the injuries. Police said no one has been arrested over the incident that happened on December 12.

Cases of violent robberies have lately been on the rise amid efforts by the police to arrest the situation, including increased patrols and operations.

In Nairobi and other urban areas, cases of muggings, thefts and burglaries have been on the rise in the last few months. It does not matter what time it is or how safe or unsafe a place is typically considered. The criminals often carry clubs, knives and guns.

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Phones, tablets, laptops and cash are the most desired items on the list of these criminals whose aggression and violent modus operandi point to a growing state of lawlessness.

In one incident on October 30, Keagan Githua, 24, was fatally stabbed in the chest in Ridgeways. The assailants, who were on a motorbike, targeted his mobile phone and other items. The young man died minutes later.

A week later, a social media post by a user identified as Lilian Munyua – who claimed to be an employee of Kenyatta National Hospital – captured the chilling situation. Ms Munyua said the country’s biggest referral hospital deals with four to seven cases of stabbings daily, most being victims of muggings in Nairobi.

“I have helplessly watched young and old men and women breath their last while trying to save them. Some are in the ICU while others have survived but with lifelong injuries,” she said.

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Last month, the government issued a stern warning to criminals in Nairobi, saying that they will be dealt with ruthlessly.

While addressing the media, Interior Cabinet Secretary Prof Kithure Kindiki reiterated the government’s commitment to arrest crime, banditry and terrorism in the country.

“We have witnessed increasing criminal activity within the city of Nairobi. It’s a small group of criminals armed with knives who are terrorising the residents of this city and other few urban centres,” said Prof Kindiki who also announced an immediate change in deployment of police command in the city.

The CS said the national police service has also put in place a multi-agency and multi discipline approach to the insecurity issue.

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