Even as unexplained killings in Matungu, Kakamega county continue to scare the residents, a seven-year-old boy was killed in his family’s kitchen on Sunday evening despite deployment of security forces in the area four days ago.
Kakamega Governor Wycliffe Oparanya has now claimed that some of the suspected killers are from Uganda.
“Some of the suspects who have been killing people in Matungu come from the neighbouring country,” he said, adding that others pass through Busia to Uganda after committing the crime.
He called on security agents in Busia County to cooperate with their Kakamega counterparts to curb the menace. The governor said residents want to live peacefully without having General Service Unit officers in their midst.
“Internal Security Cabinet secretary Fred Matiang’i brought GSU officers to maintain security in Matungu but we don’t want them because we want our people to live peacefully,” he said at the Anglican Church of Kenya, Katakwa diocese in Teso North constituency.
The recent murder of the Class One pupil at Bulimbo Star Academy who was stabbed on the neck and his stomach slit open has left the residents more frightened.
The boy was found writhing in pain and later succumbed to the injuries at the Kakamega County General Hospital while undergoing treatment.
Residents are now demanding that police extend the scope of investigations to establish whether the killings are connected to ritual and human sacrifice.
They claim most of the killings bore common traits where no theft is committed and the scene is left with no blood.
“We were alerted by a distress call from his brother and when we arrived we found the boy’s bowels slit open. He also had a deep cut on the jugular although the crime scene had few visible dots of blood,” Saleh Kweyu, the boy’s grandfather told journalists yesterday.
Kakamega County Commissioner Adulrazak Jaldesa urged residents to avoid speculation over the killing until investigations are completed.
“We cannot conclusively say the killing is different from others until investigations are done,” he said.
Matungu MP Justus Murunga, who was on Sunday freed on police bond after spending a night in custody over the killings, yesterday visited the family of the slain boy and expressed misgivings with the strategies being employed to combat crime.
He said the police should befriend the public to extract crucial information to aid the operation.