Police in Mbita are investigating the cause of death of a 23-year-old man whose decomposing body was found in a bush after he went missing two weeks ago.
The body of Fred Omondi was found dangling on a rope tied to a tree in a thicket at Ogongo–Tir village in Mbita.
Omondi was last seen on November 6 while selling charcoal at Ogongo trading centre. He had occasionally been hired to operate a boda boda at the centre.
Area senior assistant chief Margaret Aluoch said the wife reported that Omondi left their house for business but failed to return.
Aluoch said the family’s efforts to trace him did not bear fruit.
“His wife reported that they were disturbed since Omondi did not come back home and his mobile phone was off,” Aluoch said.
The administrator said they had reported the matter to police for investigations.
She said Omondi must have been killed elsewhere, before being tied to a tree in the bush to appear like he committed suicide.
“The family said they had no disagreement that could warrant him to hang himself. We suspect he was killed and body dumped in the thicket,” Aluoch said.
Mbita subcounty police commander Charles Mwangi said they are investigating the matter. Mwangi said they had summoned family members and people who were with Omondi before his death for interrogation.
“We’re appealing to residents with relevant information to report to us to expedite the investigations,” Mwangi said.
He said they will conduct postmortem. The body was collected from the scene by police officers and taken to Homa Bay County Teaching and Referral Hospital mortuary.
Edited by Kiilu Damaris
