The Lee Funeral home in Nairobi was the scene of a dramatic tussle on Saturday, August 29, as family members fought over the body of the late Nairobi Provincial Chief Timothy Muumbo.
The late police boss collapsed and died on June 22, 2015, leaving behind an estate believed to be worth at least Ksh1 Billion.
When he died, the initial cause was documented as a heart attack, however, one of his daughters, Carolyn Muumbo and her two siblings Jonston Kassim Muumbo and Mr Alex Munyasya requested for an autopsy.
Former Chief Government Pathologist Moses Njue was given 2 weeks to conduct the post-mortem.
His submission turned out to be a carbon copy of another one filed by the police and an initial report prepared by a doctor hired by the family.
The inexplicable coincidence is what pushed the three siblings to seek an independent autopsy, this time by Prof Emily Rogena.
It was the independent doctor who but found that some vital organs were missing, including his heart and kidneys.
The former Chief Pathologist was on May 15, 2018, charged with stealing the heart. He denied the charges and was granted bail of Ksh 300,000.
He was charged alongside his son, Lemuel Anasha Mureithi - who was his assistant pathologist at the time.
The late Muumbo's family argued that the pathologist destroyed the heart to conceal evidence.
Notably, just three years earlier, March 2, 2015, another family based in Meru took the former pathologist to court over a similar incident in which their Kin Benedict Karau was buried without his heart.
Once again, the former pathologist had been called to carry out a post mortem only for the heart to end up missing.
Njue was set to be charged with three counts including theft contrary to section 275 of the penal code, wilful destruction of evidence and illegal removal of body parts contrary to the Anatomy Act.
However, he rushed to court and obtained an anticipatory bail and filed a petition seeking to block the charges.
In the case of the late former Nairobi police boss, the 5-year tussle over his body is yet to be resolved.
While children of the first wife argue that Muumbo should be buried at his ancestral home, those of the second wife are opposed to the idea.
