Parents’ agony as son goes missing during school break

Rooney Omido, the son of Baringo North District Officer James Masinde, is reported to have been missing since February 2019. [Photo, Courtesy]

In the three weeks and three days since his 13-year-old son mysteriously vanished from home, James Masinde has been in denial.

Yet now, as the days continue to progress into weeks, he is gradually coming to terms with the loss of his son Rooney Omido.

On Thursday, February 21, Rooney got up as usual, studied and washed his uniform.

At 10 am, he went out to play with his friends in Mbotela Estate, where the family resides.

According to Mr Masinde and his wife Jacky Masinde, Rooney did not return home for lunch. Which was unusual. 

“My other son called me after 7pm, telling me that Rooney had not come home. I was still at work along Mombasa Road,” Ms Masinde said. 

At the time, her husband was in Baringo North where he works as a District Officer.

Rooney is supposed to sit his KCPE exams this year at St Matthew’s ACK Primary School, Webuye.

Mid-term break

He was almost completing his mid-term break when he vanished.

The desperate couple says they have been in a frantic search for their son, posting notices of his disappearance around Mbotela and on popular social media platforms like Facebook and WhatsApp.

The couple has also reported Rooney’s disappearance at local administration offices, beginning with the county government offices and at several police stations, including Makongeni Police Station, where the case was reported under OB number 13/23/2/2019.

The parents say they have been all over the city trying to find Rooney, paying visits to neigbours’ and relatives’ homes to hospitals, mortuaries and spots frequented by street children, but none of those efforts have paid off.

“We are still searching for him. We will not give up,” the couple said yesterday when The Standard visited them at their church in Eastleigh.

They remain hopeful, but admit they do not know where to begin the elusive search for Rooney, given the absence of clues.

“His friends say he was acting normal and left for home after playing,” the parents say.

They insist that many things don’t add up. Their house is situated in one of the three blocks of the estate. They have neighbours in Mbotela, all of whom are civil servants.

Kidnap fear

The buildings are surrounded by a concrete fence and on each side, there is a gate manned by a guard.

“His friends say he went home. But the watchmen claim they did not see him passing through either of the gates,” the couple said.

“I think he might have been kidnapped. He is not the type of child who would just leave like that. He is a smart and sociable child with no problems,” Rooney’s mother said.

Anyone with information about Rooney can report to a nearby police station or contact Missing Child Kenya.