Suspected kidnap after Juja MCA goes missing

Kiambu, Kenya: Police are investigating circumstances under which Juja Ward Rep Samuel Gitau went missing on Saturday night.

Kiambu county police commander James Mugera said officers are still pursuing the matter to establish the circumstances surrounding his disappearance.

According to family members, the Member of County Assembly (MCA) left his home in the outskirts of Juja town on Saturday at 8.30pm to withdraw cash at a nearby ATM but never returned.

Mr Gitau’s vehicle was found at the entrance of his home on Sunday morning but huge stones had been used to block it. The vehicle’s headlights were also still on and keys in the ignition.

His expectant wife Tabitha Wairimu told The Standard she found her husband in the house when she returned home from work. He then  excused himself shortly after to go and withdraw some money.

“He told me he wanted to get some money from an ATM in Juja since he was a guest of honour at a fund raiser in aid of a local church the following day. He never came back,” said Ms Wairimu.

She said it was unusual for him to leave the house at such time. “My pleas to convince him to make the cash withdrawal the following morning fell on deaf ears,” she said.

The wife said she had never heard him complain of any threats to his life, or seen him behave in a way to suggest something was wrong.

Gitau’s mother Florence Wairimu narrated how her son came and picked her from a wedding she was attending in Marurui on that fateful day.

“He picked me from the wedding and we passed at Greenfield in Juja, where there was a fund-raiser. We then proceeded home as it approached 7pm since he said he wanted to watch the 7pm news, and later withdraw some money for the following day,” said the mother