A trip to the market was her last

Kericho, Kenya: She left home for the market on April 9, 2012, to sell vegetables like she always did. Rael Chepkorir Rop, then 53, and a resident of Kapkatet, Kericho County, was a local trader who sold vegetables at local markets around the county.

On the fateful day, she had gone to the trading centre in Sotik but is yet to return home, more than two years later.

“She went out as usual to sell her wares at the Sotik market. We waited for her but she did not return that evening. She often visited relatives and we thought that’s where she was but days turned to weeks, forcing us to search intensively search for her,” says Peter Lang’at, her 34-year-old son.

The family says prior to her disappearance, the mother of eight - six boys and two girls - had no disagreements with any of them.

To rule out the death of their beloved mother, the family combed through all the mortuaries in Kericho and Sotik hospitals. They then reported her disappearance at Litein Police Station, but the police are yet to trace her.

“We have searched everywhere and spent all our resources but nobody knows where she is. We really miss her,” says Lang’at.

The last piece of information they had on her was in 2013, when women who did business with her told the family they had spotted someone who looked like her in an area known as Rungut. On getting there, they found a woman who merely resembled their mother.

Lang’at, who is the first born, says his mother was a source of inspiration for many. He believes she is alive somewhere and that one day she will come back home.

Her husband of 32 years, Samuel Kirui, says his wife had no reason to leave her matrimonial home.

“I never beat her. We worked together. She sold vegetables while I did casual work. We pooled resources to support our eight children. Since she disappeared, I have been left with the children,” says Kirui.

He adds that his wife was hardworking and hopes that she will one day return to them as they miss her a lot.

After two and a half years of searching, the villagers seem to have resorted to divine intervention for consolation.

“We leave it all to God. If at all she is still alive, which we strongly believe she is, we need her back because we do not know what has kept her away for so long,” says Kirui. “We stopped looking for her but we believe she is alive. We appeal to anyone with information about her to report to the relevant authorities.”

Rael’s disappearance has particularly affected her youngest child, Bethuel Kipkoech, who is a Standard Eight pupil.

“My mother was the best and she loved us very much. Wherever she is, we really need her as we can’t do without her. She always did all she could to ensure we got to school in time,” says a teary Kipkoech.