A suspect shot dead by police yesterday was wanted for killing his aunt for rejecting his dirty money. A pistol belonging to a slain bodyguard of Nairobi Senator Mike Sonko was recovered from the scene.
Kennedy Kinyanjui, 23, shot dead 50-year-old Alice Wanjiku when she returned money he had sent her via M-Pesa. Wanjiku was shot three times – once in the head and twice in the stomach – in Thogoto village, Kiambu, on June 16. Police said Kinyanjui shot Wanjiku because he suspected she had told his relatives and the authorities about his criminal life.
Kinyanjui and three others were shot dead by officers from Special Crime Prevention Unit at 3.30am on Mombasa Road. Police recovered two pistols and 24 bullets. Kasarani police said one of the pistols, a Ceska, was stolen from constable Bakari Joto, Sonko’s guard, on March 6 at Kasarani. The second pistol is yet to be traced.
Childhood friends Kinyanjui and his accomplice Alex Kahiro, 22, are high school dropouts who turned to violent crime. They are both from Thogoto. Kikuyu CID boss Aden Ahmed described them as “vicious criminals” wanted for murder and robbery.
Save for Kinyanjui’s father Peter Wainaina, four members of the family, including his mother, brother and sister, have criminal cases pending in court. Aden said Kinyanjui’s mother Jackline Njeri, 40, was charged with receiving proceeds of crime. It is alleged Kinyanjui sent stolen money to his mother via M-Pesa.
His sister Margaret Wainaina has been charged with possession of ammunition while Stephen Ngugi, his younger brother, has been charged with handling suspected stolen goods.
Kinyanjui and Kahiro attended the same school. Kinyanjui was born in Thogoto village. He attended Thogoto Primary and joined Kanunga High School in 2009 but was expelled for undisclosed reasons. Kinyanjui was admitted at Rungiri High School, where he dropped out in form three.