The body of a taxi driver kidnapped on Saturday night was found inside Solio Ranch, more than 20km away yesterday morning.
Charles Kinyua disappeared after he was allegedly hired by people pretending to be clients.
According to his fellow taxi drivers, Mr Kinyua was hired at a taxi bay outside Nyeri's Green Oak Hotel.
"He was approached by people who hired him to drive them somewhere," said Joseph Gachanja, a taxi driver
It is said that a few minutes later, the car was spotted near Dedan Kimathi University College of Technology on the outskirts of Nyeri town.
"It was seen dropping a person who looked drunk before being traced to the Nyahururu-Nyeri highway being driven at high speed," said Gachanja.
The car was later discovered in Nakuru County after its three occupants engaged the police in a shootout in which one suspect was killed while three others escaped.
For two days, Kinyua's family, together with more than 200 taxi drivers, combed Kabiru-ini Forest near the Dedan Kimathi college in search of him.
At midday, the search team that included Nyeri Town MP Esther Murugi and Kenya Forest Service rangers was informed that the body of an unidentified man had been found on the ranch.
The body had deep stab wounds in the chest and forehead.
The taxi drivers quickly drove to Mweiga Police Station, where they identified their colleague.
Kieni OCPD John Kemboi said the body was found in a secluded spot inside the expansive ranch, and that the victim's mouth had been sealed with masking tape and his left eye was gouged out.
The macabre discovery immediately triggered a massive demonstration in Nyeri town, with residents protesting against rising insecurity.
VIOLENT ROBBERIES
Taxi drivers backed by matatu operators brought business in the town to a standstill as they demanded action over the spiralling wave of crime.
The protestors said their lives were at risk following the rise in violent robberies.
Lucas Mathenge, chairman of a taxi drivers' association in Nyeri, said in the last one month, they had lost four vehicles to criminals who hired them posing as customers.
"We are living in fear as criminals seem to have taken over our businesses through a series of hijackings and murders," he said.
He claimed that since the release of two suspects on bond by a Nyeri court last month, the number of carjackings had increased.
The drivers accused police in the area of laxity.
Nyeri OCPD Masai Makau advised taxi drivers to be vigilant and to verify the identities of their customers before ferrying them.
He told them to avoid carrying more than three unknown passengers.
