After more than 20 months on the run, Fred Murunga, the suspect accused of murdering his 63-year-old employer in Murang’a on September 22, 2022, has been apprehended. His evasion caused considerable distress to the victim’s family, who sought justice for their loved one.
Murunga was arrested on June 11, 2024, by detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) at a security firm in Ruiru, where he was seeking employment. He had worked as the deceased’s farmhand for one and a half months and resided at his home in Kerandi village, Kigumo, Murang’a County.
The incident report at Ngonda Police Station indicated that on the day of the murder, Murunga sent the 12-year-old grandchild of Mzee Paul Njuguna Kamau to a nearby shop. While the child was away, Murunga allegedly attacked his employer with a machete. The grandchild returned to find his grandfather locked in the kitchen, crying in pain.
With the rest of the family away, the young boy, who had come to visit his grandfather to bring him breakfast, raised the alarm, attracting villagers and local police. They broke into the kitchen and discovered Mzee’s blood-soaked body and the suspected murder weapon beside him. Enraged neighbors searched for Murunga in vain, as he had disappeared with the deceased’s motorcycle and mobile phone.
Kigumo DCI officers launched a manhunt, uncovering that the stolen motorcycle and phone had been sold in Eldoret. Murunga’s arrest brings hope for justice to the grieving family.
