Kin bury body thought to be of International Criminal Court witness

Kenya: After a long wait, the body that was initially thought to be that of an ICC witness was finally buried on Thursday in an emotional sendoff.

The body was hurriedly interred a few minutes to 6pm, a few minutes after the police released it to the family from Chepsonoi in Nandi County.

The release of the body by the police followed DNA results that detectives said indicated by 99.9 per cent that it belonged to Yusuf Hussein, who was a matatu tout along the Kapsabet-Kisumu road. His family members claimed he was last seen around Christmas last year.

The much awaited results were released to the family yesterday and although they arrived early at the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH) mortuary to collect the body, they had to wait for over seven hours before it was released to them.

Over 100 members of Yusuf Hussein's family from Chepsonoi, relatives and pallbearers thronged the mortuary to collect and bury his body in Eastleigh, Eldoret town in line with their Islamic faith.

The results of blood samples collected from the deceased and members of the two families about two weeks ago identified the body as belonging to Hussein.

Biometric testing

The results were announced by the CID yesterday after investigators from the Serious Crime Unit led by John Kariuki were dispatched to the area.

This was after Meshack Yebei, who is reported to be a critical defence witness at the ICC was allegedly abducted on December 28, before his family members claimed the body that was found floating in river Yala in Nandi County was his.

After the body was recovered, biometric results from finger print analysis identified the remains to be that of Hussein, sparking off a contest between the two families on who the body belonged to.

On Thursday, the family, which included Yusuf's two widows Saum Hussein and Mercy Mmboga Maliazo, an Imam from Chepsonoi and other relatives endured the scorching sun after they were forced to camp for over seven hours at the morgue before taking the body for burial.