The mother of murdered Multimedia University student Sylvia Kemunto wept uncontrollably as a suspect in the case took a plea.
Kemunto, a first-year student pursuing Mass Communication and Computer Science, reportedly died on March 30.
A university student, Erick Mutinda, was charged with the murder of Kemunto.
While appearing for Mutinda’s plea taking, Kemunto’s mother, Triza Kwamboka, was seen being emotional as she cried uncontrollably.
She was surrounded by family and friends as they tried to comfort her.
Mutinda pleaded not guilty to the murder charge.
He was, however, denied bail and will remain in custody for 30 days pending a probation report. The case will be mentioned on May 29.
Mutinda surrendered to police at Sultan Hamud police station in Makueni County on April 3, after being on the run since March 31.
He is believed to have fled to his rural home after allegedly killing Kemunto and stashing her body in a water tank at the university.
He told police he visited Kemunto’s room that day, knowing she would be alone. He said he had been trying to seduce her, but she resisted.
A confrontation ensued when he tried to touch her, during
which he hit and pushed her, causing her to hit her head on the wall and
collapse. He said he realised she was dead minutes later.
He allegedly
folded her body into a large suitcase, took it to his room briefly, then dumped
it in a rooftop water tank.
“The fight
turned fatal. He panicked, dumped the body in the tank, and fled,” said a
police officer involved in the investigation. The tank was in use at the time.
Kemunto's mother began searching for her daughter on
March 30 after she failed to reach her. Concerned, she travelled from Kawangware
to the university and found Kemunto missing. The college confirmed her absence,
and a report was filed at Lang'ata Police Station.
Kwamboka
told police her daughter had previously complained about a fellow student
making unwanted advances.
Police
believe Kemunto was killed in her room, and her body was dragged to the rooftop. The
killer then tied the tank with a wire and placed a stone on it to avoid
detection.
Her roommate
told police she had left for church that day, leaving Kemunto alone. Witnesses
later saw the suspect dragging a suitcase from Kemunto’s room to his own in a
different block. That night, the suspect’s roommate noticed the suitcase in
their room, but it was gone the following morning.
“The next morning, I woke up around 8 am and noticed that both the guy and the suitcase were gone,” the roommate said.
