After 11 days in police custody in Tanzania Mombasa trader Hamisi Madilo arrived back home in the wee hours of Saturday morning.
Tanzanian authorities finally released him, saying it was a case of mistaken identity.
"I am happy I have been cleared. It is good to be home," Madilo said.
The 28-year-old graduate trainee at the Base Titanium Company in Kwale was arrested on Christmas eve last year while en route to Dar es Salaam to buy clothes for sale.
He was cleared by Kenyan authorities at the Lungs Lunga-Horohoro border post, but was arrested by Tanzanian authorities.
Madilo spent nine days in custody and was taken from one police station to another, before being released on Thursday afternoon.
However, he was rearrested after meeting his family members and Haki Africa officials who had been pushing for his proper treatment and release.
On Saturday, Madilo went to Pandya Memorial Hospital for tests to
check his health.
Related:
Hamisi Madilo (3rd R) with his family and Haki Africa officials at Pandya Memorial Hospital on Saturday, January 5, 2019. / BRIAN OTIENO
"I was treated very well all that time I was in custody," Madilo told the Star.
Haki Africa executive director Hussein Khalid said the swift intervention of Foreign Affairs CS Monica Juma, Kenya's Ambassador to Tanzania Dan Kazungu and embassy attache Habiba Seby was key to securing Madilo's release.
Khalid said, "We are yet to know how exactly they mistook his identity.
Was it the name or the physical features?"
He said the Tanzanian authorities should apologise to Madilo's family.
The trader's wife, Zeitun Chimako, said she is elated that her husband is finally back home.
"I was worried my child was going to be without a father," Chimako, who is expectant, said.
Madilo's father Mohamed Mbetsa said his siblings refused to go back to school before seeing their brother.
"You can imagine the agony we are going through.
We are grateful all is well now," Mbetsa said at Pandya Memorial Hospital.
Madilo test results showed everything was normal.
"The reported chest pains are likely to be as a result of anxiety disorder most probably caused by stress," the medical report said.
Khalid praised the Kenyan authorities. He said the swift action will boost confidence among the people.
However, he asked the state to check how many Kenyans are held in Tanzanian jails and follow up on their cases.