Postmortem confirms Khalwale's farmhand was killed by bull

Detectives led by Martin Nyabuto (in white) at a cowshed in Senator Boni Khalwale's home where a bull gored herdsman Kizito Amukune. [Benjamin Sakwa, Standard]

A second autopsy on the body of Kizito Amukune alias Moi, the trainer and caretaker of Kakamega Senator Boni Khalwale's fighting bull has confirmed that he died as a result of excessive bleeding after being gored.

This effectively puts an end to speculation about his death. Speculation was rife that Dr Khalwale could have had a hand in the death of his farmhand.

Chief Government Pathologist Johansen Oduor conducted the second postmortem Saturday morning at the Kakamega General Funeral Parlour barely hours after Dr Khalwale, his workers and some family members were interrogated by officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) at the Senator's rural home.

"I was called to perform the second postmortem after there were some complaints and according to my first findings, the deceased had injuries on the forehead, on the right side at the anterior neck and on the inner thigh of the left leg," said Dr Oduor.

After briefing the family verbally on the postmortem results, Oduor told journalists the late succumbed to injuries meted on him by the bull.

"Looking at these injuries, they were penetrating and they had features which included bruising around them and to look at them closely they look like injuries caused by something that was not sharp but a bit blunt which is in keeping with the horn of an animal," said Dr Oduor.

He added: "Therefore from all these findings we can conclude that the initial autopsy was indeed correct and it was caused by an animal other than something which has stabbed by a person like what was being alleged that it was a knife or something like that."

The first autopsy was conducted on January 29 by Western Pathologist Dickson Muchana at the same facility, with results revealing that the deceased died due to excessive bleeding caused by the goring of a bull.

Oduor's findings were received well by Dr Jimmy Akhonya who represented the complainants.

"I was representing those who had complained that there was some sort of foul play but I have indeed attended the second autopsy and written my report on the same and I conquer with the findings Dr Oduor has stated, it is as he has stated," said Akhonya.

On his part, Senator Khalwale who had linked the complaints and controversy around the death of his long-serving farmhand to politics termed the second autopsy report as a closure to rumours and a beginning for the community to give the late a final and befitting send-off.

"I want to thank all the investigative agencies and medical experts for giving this matter the seriousness it deserves, I want to thank Dr Oduor for putting a closure to this matter and as a bullfighting community and the deceased family we have now an opportunity to collect the remains of the late tomorrow and give him befitting send off on Monday," said Khalwale.

Fredrick Muhanji, the deceased's elder brother welcomed the report stating the findings have now given the family peace and leeway to bury their kin.

Muhanji added that the family has suffered and gone through a lot of trauma asking the government to establish the person who stopped the burial and make him to face the law.

"As a family, all we want is to collect the body so that we can bury our kin as earlier planned, however, we have encountered huge losses because the food we had prepared and bought has gone bad and we want the government to see how it can help us with funds so that we can have a befitting sendoff," said Muhanji.