Albanus Muthini, 46, according to a senior Directorate of Criminal Investigations detective attached to Machakos police station, was subjected to mob injustice after he stole a motorcycle belonging to a bodaboda operator in Machakos town on the fateful day.
The rider whose motorcycle had been stolen raised an alarm that attracted his colleague’s attention, leading to a chase that resulted in Muthini’s lynching.
“Yesterday at 4.11pm, it was reported by one Allan Nzunza, a bodaboda operator and resident of Machakos town, that he had packed his motorcycle of registration number KMEX 032 D of TVS make at the junction of Syokimau-Kitui road, waiting for customers together with his colleagues.
All of a sudden, a man not known to them jumped on his motorcycle and road towards Kitui road direction,” the cop told the Star on Friday.
Nzunza said he raised alarm and other bodaboda operators responded by making a chase to the deceased.
Muthini hit a bump with the speeding motorcycle and lost its control, thereby landing into a ditch before the riders caught up with him.
“He was pounced on by the boda boda operators who were chasing him. He was beaten and killed,” the detective said.
He said they processed the scene and removed the deceased’s body to Machakos Level 5 hospital mortuary.
“The deceased was identified as Albanus Muthini Phillip. He had a pen knife,” the cop said.
Preliminary investigations after getting the deceased’s national ID and photo, according to the detective, established that he was facing two different active theft-related cases in Machakos courts and was out on bond and cash bail, respectively.
“In the older case, the deceased was released from custody on surety of a land title deed, while in recent case, he was released on Sh50,000 cash bail,” the cop said.
Police said Muthini, before his demise, lived alone in a rented house within Machakos subcounty.
He hails from Kalawani in Tawa, Makueni county.