Two men visited the 28-year-old woman whose body was later found in a bathtub, with her throat slit in her apartment in Nairobi.

According to the family of the late Monicah Nyawira Kimani, the men were not strangers to their daughter as she introduced them by name to a neighbour before she ushered them into the apartment.

Inside the house, according to George Thiru, Monicah’s brother who was among the first people to reach her apartment in Lamuria Gardens, were two glasses of wine.

A yellow bag with a piece of bread, injera an Ethiopian delicacy, was hanging from the main door.

According to Thiru, the chapati-like bread had not been broken. It was apparent the killers had walked through the front door, locked their victim inside and took her house and car keys.

When I arrived at the house on Thursday night at around 11pm, I talked to a neighbour who told me he had seen two men who my sister introduced by name. The name of one of the men was familiar,” Thiru said.

He added that although nothing seemed to have been stolen from the house, he could not trace the dress her sister had collected immediately she arrived from Juba on Wednesday evening.

“She had ordered the dress for her birthday that falls on October 10. She was planning a big bash for her birthday and had even booked a tent to accommodate about 100 people.


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She had finalised arrangements for décor and was in the process of selecting the venue in Thika,” he added.

When the Sunday Standard visited the grief-stricken family on Saturday in Thika’s Landless estate, the father, Bishop Paul Ngarama of Rebuilding Apostolic Faith Mission church, explained that his family had been unable to follow up with the witness who had talked to the people who last saw her daughter.

“When we returned after taking Monica’s body to Chiromo, the guards at Lamuria Gardens were reluctant to let us in. When we told them we wanted to talk to the neighbour, they told us that he had moved,” said the father.


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However, when we enquired from the agent whose contacts are listed on the billboard outside the apartments, we were informed that there was no vacancy in Block A, third floor, where Monicah was staying.

Thiru recalled that when he last called his sister on Wednesday at around 6.30pm, their conversation was very brief.

“She informed me that she had just landed at JKIA and was in a cab headed to her apartment along Denis Pritt Road. She told me to disconnect as she wanted to attend to another incoming call. When I tried to call her later, she did not answer.”

Thiru said that later at around 9pm, on the fateful Wednesday, he sent her a message on WhatsApp, but it was not viewed. This, he says, was strange as her house had Wi-Fi.

Their father said he last spoke to Monica a week ago and she did not sound like she was in any sort of trouble.

According to Thiru, Monicah was not supposed to be in Nairobi until Saturday (22/9/2018), as there had been a mix-up when she was booking her return flight to Juba.

“She had to pay an additional 300 dollars to change her ticket so that she could fly on Wednesday. She was keen on returning to Nairobi as she was supposed to fly to Dubai for a holiday,” said Thiru.

He added:” In fact, she was to return back from her holiday on September 28. Sadly, this was never to be and this is the day we are planning to bury her.”

The family, which is still trying to come to terms with the gruesome murder said there was no business rivalry, and neither did Monicah owe anybody any money as the Milly Paul General Trading Family business’ finances were handled by Thiru.

“We do not know who did this to her and why. Her house was in disarray, indicating that there was a struggle. It’s as if someone was looking for something. However, all her phones and other valuables appeared to be intact,” Thiru said.

The family said they are still grappling with burning questions about the murder, chief among them being the mystery of the men who visited their daughter and what happened to the dress she picked.


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They would also want to know why the killers took the house and car keys, and what the motive could have been since nothing was stolen and the intruders had not broken into the house.

But even as they desperately search for these answers, including the puzzle of the CCTV cameras which had no recordings of the fateful night, the family now has to contend with the death of a daughter and sister they described as being very creative and innovative, and a key plank to her business in Sudan.

By the time of going to press, the police had not made any arrests, although there were indications that they were pursuing some leads that could unmask the killers. 

Photos courtesy: https://hivisasa.com/posts/1057-photos-29-year-old-woman-killed-in-kilimani-lived-large-drove-expensive-cars