A prime suspect in the kidnapping and murder of a university student has been arrested.
The man was arrested in Ruai on Monday night with a mobile phone belonging to the late student Christine Ambani, 23.
Ambani was a student at Kiriri Women's University in Nairobi.
The suspect is said to have confessed to the incident that happened on July 12, 2021, in Githurai area, Kiambu County.
The student is said to have visited a friend in Githurai, never to show up again several hours later.
Her body was found at a parking lot in Githurai before being moved to the mortuary.
The deceased woman’s throat had been slit.
She was still in the same clothes she was in before being murdered when her body was discovered at the City Mortuary.
Her relatives said her killers had taken control of her mobile phone and started to chat with them on the family WhatsApp group.
The killers even demanded a ransom from the family prompting one of her sisters to send Sh5,000 to the phone as a way of building trust as they looked for more.
The kidnapper however sent her photo that she had taken earlier on before her apparent kidnap and killing before he told them to go to the mortuary for her body.
The deceased woman had earlier on told her friend she had gone to visit her friend in Githurai and that she was on her way back home (Mwihoko) only for her mutilated body to be found hours later.
Her sister Ruth told journalists she became suspicious after she missed an exam.
"I had talked to her and realised she had missed an exam and it was a big thing. I went to where she lived in Githurai but she was not there," she said.
Ruth said the kidnappers had demanded a ransom of Sh87,000.
"I sent Sh5,000 to show my commitment to sending the rest of the ransom and for them to send proof of life (that she was still alive.) The following day he told me to go to the mortuary as they did not want our money anymore."
Nairobi police boss Augustine Nthumbi said they are investigating to establish if the suspect acted alone.
He added investigations into the incident are ongoing.
