Witness: I saw girl flag down motorists

By Isaiah Lucheli

A motorist informed the inquest into the death of university student Mercy Keino that he saw a young woman flagging down motorists along Waiyaka Way on the fateful night.

Michael Njoroge, who was travelling along the road that night, explained that he saw a woman on the road trying to flag down vehicles at 3am.

“I was heading to Kangemi to drop a nephew with his girlfriend when a woman ran to the road and I swerved to avoid hitting her. When we were coming back, the vehicle in front of me reduced speed and when I changed lanes, I saw something lying on the road,” he said.

Mr Njoroge added he drove to the right side of the road until he got off the tarmac and when he peered out of his car’s window, he saw it was the woman who was flagging down vehicles. Ronald Kemboi, Keino’s fiancé, told the court that he was living with her in Lang’ata and she had informed him she was going to pick her belongings at a friend’s home that night. But she later sent him a text message at 8pm that she was going to a party.

Keino’s parents

Mr Kemboi explained he engaged Keino in March 2010 and they were planning to wed last year.

He said he received a call from Keino’s friend Scholastic at around 3am that she had become violent after taking alcohol and she had fled the venue. He added the following morning, him and Scholastic started to search for Keino. They went to Wasini Luxury Apartments where the party was but nobody attended to them. It is then that they went to Muthangari Police Station.

“After we failed to locate her or get any vital information there, we moved to the Parklands Police Station and later Central Police Station. A police officer advised us to search at City Mortuary but we did not go there that day,” Kemboi said.

He added the following day; he accompanied Keino’s parents and his brother to City Mortuary where they found Keino’s body.

Lawyer Cliff Ombeta during cross-examination had sought to know whether Keino had called her fiancé and complained of harassment or being beaten at the party but Kemboi said she did not.

The hearing has been adjourned to December.

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