Detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) have today December 13, 2025, arrested a man suspected of involvement in a femicide case after months on the run since October 2024.
The suspect was traced and arrested in Busia town near the Kenya–Uganda border, where investigators said he had been hiding while working at a local business.
The arrest followed intelligence-led operations, inter-county coordination and forensic analysis by homicide detectives working alongside regional officers. The suspect was placed in custody as police completed processing pending arraignment.
“Relentless investigations and forensic leads finally closed in on the suspect. Detectives trailed and arrested him in Busia town near the Kenya–Uganda border, where he had been working at a cereal distribution shop while hiding in plain sight,” a statement by DCI read in part.
The suspect is accused of murdering a woman whose body was discovered inside a residential building in Thika town in October 2024, prompting an intensive manhunt.
According to detectives, the suspect went into hiding immediately after the killing and moved across regions in an attempt to evade arrest.
Records compiled by civil society and research organisations showed that 2024 recorded the highest number of femicide cases in Kenya’s history, with at least 170 women killed.
Data indicated that between September and November 2024 alone, 97 femicide cases were recorded, averaging more than one killing per day. Long-term records showed that more than 600 women were murdered between 2016 and 2024, with analysis of over 900 cases drawn from media and court records.
The data further showed that intimate partners and family members were responsible for approximately 77 per cent of femicide cases during the period under review.
Women aged between 18 and 35 years accounted for the majority of victims, while suspects were predominantly men within the same age group.
Most killings were reported to have occurred within homes, accounting for about 72 per cent of cases, while public spaces made up a smaller proportion.
Nairobi, Kiambu, and Nakuru counties recorded the highest number of femicide-related killings. Court records showed that it took an average of more than four years for femicide cases to reach a verdict after being filed.
