Nakuru’s Faith Wangui husband, the key suspect in her murder, is dead

By Kigotho Mwangi and Elijah Cherutich

Joseph Muchiri, the key suspect in the murder of 25-year-old Nakuru woman, Faith Wangui, is dead, Nakuru County Police Commander, Stephen Matu, has confirmed to K24 Digital.

Muchiri, Wangui’s estranged husband, was found dead in Mau Narok in Njoro, Matu said on Tuesday, November 19.

It is suspected Muchiri, said to be in his late 20s, committed suicide by hanging. His body was taken to Nakuru Municipal Mortuary.

Njoro Sub-County police commander, Mohammed Huka, also confirmed to K24 Digital that they have established the identity of the deceased as that of Joseph Muchiri, the main suspect in the killing of Faith Wangui.

Wangui’s body was on Saturday evening (November 16) found dumped in a thicket near Menengai Crater in Kiamaina Ward in Bahati, Nakuru County.

Wangui had gone missing since Sunday, November 10, in Nakuru shortly after meeting her estranged husband, Joseph Muchiri, at around 9pm.

Wangui, the third born in a family of four siblings (three sisters and one brother), worked as a waitress in one of the restaurants in Murang’a Town, and would regularly visit her family in Maili Sita, Nakuru County.

Faith Wangui’s body was found badly deformed with her face nearly-unrecognisable after she was doused in acid. Her arm and breast were missing, with authorities suspecting that wild animals fed on the body parts.

Faith Wangui’s elder brother, Joseph Mwangi, recounted to K24 Digital his sister’s last moments on Sunday.

Mwangi said Faith Wangui, a mother of two daughters aged 6 and 2, had taken the kids to spend the December holiday with their grandmother.

“Faith and Muchiri were an estranged couple. They had separated for nearly a year, but would meet often. When she arrived home on Saturday, November 9, she spent the night at home.

The following day, Sunday, she woke up, prepared herself for church, and left at 9am,” said Mwangi

“She did not return home. At 7pm, she called and told me that she was planning to meet someone in the central business district. Later, my family members were informed that she had been spotted in the company of Muchiri in a nightclub in Nakuru Town. The two reportedly left the entertainment joint at 9:30pm. That was the last time she was seen in public. Our attempts to reach her on phone were fruitless as her cellphone line remained offline,” said Mwangi.

Mwangi said they filed a missing person’s report on Wednesday, November 13, at Kiamaina police post.

“My sister’s relationship with Muchiri was frosty for the past one year. However, she recently began cozying up to him to the extent she would come to Nakuru, go straight to Muchiri’s place, spend a night or two there, and leave for Murang’a without stopping by at home,” said Mwangi.

Faith Wangui was raped and, thereafter, killed. A postmortem examination conducted on Wangui showed her cause of death was strangulation.

The 25-year-old’s body was taken to a Nakuru hospital morgue as police hunted for Muchiri, whom they treated as the prime suspect in the murder.