Kakamega Governor Wycliffe Oparanya has asked a family accused of kidnapping and killing school children in Kakamega town to leave.
He visited the family of a standard three girl who was kidnapped and her body discovered in a water tank last Friday. Oparanya said the family should leave the town to guarantee other residents’ safety.
“Police should ensure justice. Residents complain about the family each year and accusing it of killing children,” the governor said. Oparanya’s statement is likely to draw criticism as it violates the law allowing any Kenyan to live and conduct business anywhere.
Every citizen has the right to enter, remain in and reside anywhere in Kenya.
Angry residents on Friday burnt the suspect’s house after the child’s body was found.
Sharlene Mwanzia, nine, was a pupil at St Joseph’s Academy in Kakamega. She was reported missing from their home in Scheme Estate 10 days ago. Her body was found by a neighbour tied and dumped in a water tank next to her home.
The suspect believed to have kidnapped and killed her is a neighbour facing a murder charge. He is accused of kidnapping and killing another girl in the same estate in 2014 and is out on bond. The suspect was spotted with Mwanzia moments before her disappearance. He escaped when her family started searching for her.
Oparanya questioned why the suspect had not been convicted three years after the first incident. He said it is unfortunate that he is suspected of having killed yet another innocent child.
“In 2014 we were told the same suspect was behind the killing of another child. I was told he had been arrested and taken to court and thought he had been killed,” he said.
Oparanya said that the suspect’s family must be working with him because their house is too small for one to kill a person without others noticing.
