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Mystery over body found rotting at joggers’s paradise in Karura forest


There is an air of anxiety about the security one of Nairobi city’s most tranquil green spaces, the Karura forest, after villagers fetching firewood stumbled on a decomposing body.

The discovery which took place on Monday came out to the open on Friday afternoon as investigations on the identity of the man started.

The police have asked members of the public whose relatives are missing to go to the City Mortuary and identify the man whom they suspect was dumped in the forest.

Initial investigations showed that there was no sign of struggle.

Additionally, the body of the middle aged man had no identification documents which has made it harder for homicide detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) to find a breakthrough in their investigations.

Officers from Muthaiga Police Station responded to the scene after the body was found trapped between two trees on the southern side of the forest.

NOT IN FOREST

Friends of Karura, a lobby group that manages the forest, has denied that the body was found within the boundaries of the forest insisting it was found on the fringes.

“We have a fence around the forest. Perhaps the body was found outside the forest in an area where there is tree cover. The forest is very safe,” John Chege, the chief scout Friends of Karura responded to the Nation.

“What I can say is that I do patrols around the forest every day and I have no information about any human body which was discovered. There is even a lady who was visiting the forest today who asked me about the same and I replied that I have not heard such a thing,” he said.

With its main entrance located off Limuru Road, Karura forest is one of the few green spaces in Nairobi and is considered one of the city’s safest and most tranquil recreational spots.

Surrounded by an electric fence, the forest is an impressive 1,041 hectares of floral and fauna splendour.

It is a preferred spot for fitness lovers and capital’s expatriate population who throng it for leisure walks, cycling, hiking, picnicking, running, bird and butterfly watching.

In March, photos of a giant snake in the forest circulated on social media eliciting fear among people who frequent it.