Questions mount over Jirongo's death after forensic audit disputes police narrative

Late politician Cyrus Jirongo. [File, Standard]

Prominent businessman and politician Cyrus Jirongo died in a tragic road accident on the Nairobi-Nakuru highway Saturday morning.

The accident report from the police seen by The Standard indicated that Jirongo’s Mercedes-Benz E350 was involved in a "head-on collision" with a bus near the Gilgil junction. Witnesses at the scene described a grisly impact, with the German luxury saloon car suffering catastrophic front-end damage. Jirongo was pronounced dead at the scene, marking a shocking end for the once-powerful figure in Kenyan politics. 

The police traffic report, filed by officers from the Gilgil station, consistently used the term "head-on collision," shaping the early narrative of a high-speed, opposing-direction crash. The bus driver, was briefly detained and released as investigations, described as "routine," commenced.

The bus driver calmly explained that he thought it wise to sacrifice the father of 38 ‘official’ children, as of last count this year- rather than swerve the bus- which would have killed 67 people. 

The incident, according to a released accident forensic audit report commissioned by friends of Jirongo and availed to The Standard pokes holes into the official police version of the accident. 

The different and technically detailed account prepared by crash investigation experts who analysed an expanded set of scene and vehicle photographs paints a picture of a complex, multi-impact event that directly challenges the official "head-on" narrative. 

Jirongo’s best friend and one of the last people to speak to him, George Khaniri, says there is more than meets the eye and everything will unravel after a forensic audit on Jirongo’s phone, car and autopsy. “I met him at 7am in Karen Oasis. He was seated with Speaker Wetangula and Redman Malala. They were having a good time. I went in, finished my business and then left the place,” says Khaniri. 

He reveals that at 10:58pm he called Jirongo and jokingly asked why he was still in the entertainment spot yet they had a meeting the next day. “I asked why he was still out having fun yet him, Kisia and I had an important meeting the next day. He told me that he had finished and was just about to go home. There was no talk of him going to Naivasha,” says Khaniri whose phone record show the call ended at 11:03am.   Philip Kisia is former Nairobi town clerk and city politician.  

When he heard news of the crash, Khaniri called Redman Malala and confirmed that, indeed, after he called Jirongo the previous night, Jirongo actually left the venue a few minutes after the phone call, heading to his home in Gigiri. 

He received a call at 3:23am from Jirongo’s wife, who asked him to urgently drive to Naivasha as his friend had been involved in a car accident.

“This was very strange. There is no way Jirongo drove to Naivasha when he left Karen. Unless someone took him to Naivasha. The meeting we had the next day was too important and he wouldn't have done anything that could have made him miss it. And I have known him for years, Jirongo doesn't take such risks. If he goes out to have a drink with friends and he feels he is too tired, many times, he parks the car by the side of the road and sleeps it off for a few minutes. He has done that all his life, why should he, at this age, decide to start driving to Naivasha at midnight?” poses Khaniri.

Khaniri arrived in Naivasha at 4:30 pm to find the lifeless body of his friend at the accident scene. “He had broken both ankles and one arm was broken. There was a slight bruise on his face and a small cut above his eyes. That's not consistent with the police report that says he died of head injuries. Such an explanation can only be made after an autopsy. Was he carjacked and taken to Naivasha?” asks Khaniri. Who called for an ambulance, loaded the body and took his friend's remains to Lee Funeral Home. 

“The death of C J is no longer just a tragic traffic accident. The man was a good orator and serious mobiliser, and some people feared him; he was a threat to some people,” says Philip Kisia, hinting that there is more than meets the eye in the demise of Jirongo.

“He was a man of the people. An international businessman. Lately, he had gotten into some very good business dealings in minerals from DRC and other countries. He was a threat to some people,” says Kisia, the man who was to host Jirongo and Khaniri for lunch in his house on Saturday. 

Jirongo’s caretaker, Josephat Idoli, who lived in his compound, on Friday, said he prepared supper and at about 9pm, called his boss to tell him that dinner was ready.

“He told me he was going to come home. At 10pm, I called him to tell him that I was heading to bed and his supper was placed on the table. He told me to go ahead and sleep because he will be coming home shortly. He did not mention that he was going to Naivasha. He is a man who can't forget such details. Because even on the days he will not come home, he calls me so early and tells me to only prepare supper for myself since he won’t be coming,” says Idoli.

Jirongo’s son, Jake Jirongo, says there are a lot of questions left unanswered by the circumstances under which his father died. “The family will meet later in the day, form a committee and all relevant issues will be raised then,” says Jake who spent the best part of Wednesday in his father’s company. 

The commissioned forensic brief, which was made available to The Standard is marked by its clinical, evidence-based language, begins its demolition of the initial police report with a key physical finding, the "Primary Impact – Rear-Left Quarter." The analysis notes that there was” severe deformation localised to the rear-left quarter," with the tail lamp shattered inward, the fuel flap torn open, and clear intrusion around the rear wheel. "The boot lid is not telescoped centrally," the report states, a crucial detail indicating the crushing force came from the side and rear, not from the front. "The Mercedes was struck from the rear-left quarter by a heavier, faster vehicle. Damage pattern is inconsistent with a self-initiated frontal collision."

The police report indicates that there was one point of contact, a head-on collision. 

This stands in shocking contrast to the police report that makes no mention of any significant rear-quarter damage, focusing entirely on the demolished front. The forensic team identifies this frontal damage as the "Secondary Impact – Catastrophic Frontal Collision," which they term the "Terminal Event." They describe an "asymmetrical" collapse of the engine block, peeled-back bonnet, and buckled roof—damage consistent with a violent, short-distance stop against an immovable object like a bus chassis. 

According to the report, Jirongo’s car was not travelling at high speed toward the bus. Instead, it was likely moving slowly or was stopped when it was violently propelled forward after being struck from behind and to the side. 

The report further suggests that the entire truth about the accident will be unravelled by the car’s Supplemental Restraint System (SRS) or Event Data Recorder (EDR), just like a plane's "black box" that holds digital fingerprints of the crash’s final moments.

“Modern vehicles like the Mercedes E350 are rolling data hubs. The forensic brief lists this as mandatory evidence: it can confirm pre-impact speed, brake application, seatbelt status, the precise number of impacts, and the timing of airbag deployment. "Which airbags/pretensioners deployed and when?" the report asks. This data is critical because in a rear-quarter strike followed by a frontal impact, the airbag deployment sequence would be complex. The driver could have been thrown out of position, rendering safety systems less effective. The conspicuous absence of any mention of this data retrieval in the police report is a glaring omission. Has it been secured? Has it been analysed? Or has it been overlooked or, worse, ignored?” reads the report. 

Another glaring inconsistency between the police report and the witnesses is the early scene descriptions, which noted Jirongo had only minor visible facial cuts.

“The forensic analysis provides a grim explanation: the forces involved in such a two-stage crash—a lateral shove followed by an instant deceleration—are prime causes of internally devastating injuries like aortic rupture, cervical spine separation, or diffuse axonal brain injury. These leave minimal external marks. A proper post-mortem examination is therefore not just routine; it is the only way to corroborate the crash physics.”

The report rubbishes the police explanation that Jirongo died from injuries to head. It asks;

"What is the confirmed medical cause of death from post-mortem?" The public awaits this official result, which must be compared against the forensic model.

Finally, the most glaring loophole is the story the police are selling. "The description 'head-on collision with a bus' implies a single opposing-direction impact and does not reflect the evidence." Language shapes perception. A "head-on collision" implies shared fault, a terrible meeting of two vehicles. A "rear-quarter impact followed by a secondary frontal collision" implies a clear initiating action from one party onto another. It changes the entire framework of liability and investigation. Why was this simpler, less accurate narrative propagated from the outset? Was it a technical error by untrained officers at the scene, or was it a conscious choice to simplify a complex event?”

“This discrepancy points to a fundamental inconsistency in understanding how CJ met his death, leaving loopholes that demand urgent public accountability. I ask the government to do a thorough investigation, because this could be a natural death but there are too many inconsistencies around it to make us believe so.” says Khaniri.