Kinoti Overhauls Langata DCI Command Over Woman's Death at Temple

Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) boss George Kinoti has made changes in the agency's Lang'ata unit after detectives nearly jeopardised a murder case. 

On Friday, April 22, DCI issued a statement acknowledging that its Lang'ata command poorly handled a murder investigation which was brought to the attention of Kinoti later on. 

The DCI made changes after raiding a residential house at a temple in Lang'ata for leads over the mysterious death of a woman of Indian heritage, who was found hanging on a window.

DCI Homicide experts at Temple Apartments on April 21, 2022.

Courtesy DCI

"Consequently, the Director DCI George Kinoti has instituted far-reaching changes at the Langata DCI command, based on how this incident was handled," the DCI's statement read in part.

Homicide experts took over investigations into the death of the 27-year-old whose body was discovered on the morning of April 3, 2022.

Neighbours spotted the lifeless body tied with a piece of cloth, at house number one of Block 1, at the Swaminarayan Temple flats, along the Southern bypass, off Langata road. 

Security guards manning the premises broke the door and retrieved the deceased’s lifeless body.

Her husband was reported to have been away from the house at the time of the discovery, and the first responders immediately notified police officers based at Langata police station, who rushed to the scene.

Forensic teams from the Crime Scene Investigations Unit, Imaging & Acoustics and the Homicide team went back to the scene and discovered that CCTV footage recorded on the day of the murder at an adjacent temple had been deleted, pointing to a likely conspiracy.

Preliminary investigations implied that the woman had taken her own life, due to mistreatment by her husband.

Her body was cremated the following day April 4, 2022, at the Kariokor crematorium in line with Hindu customs. 

But questions started emerging over the deceased's death and how the first responders handled the crime scene.

DCI Homicide experts at Temple Apartments on April 21, 2022.

Courtesy

"After a forensic examination of the scene as later demonstrated by cyber forensics and imaging experts, homicide specialists could not rule out the possibility of foul play due to the position of the body and the knot patterns of the clothing that the deceased was found hanging on," the DCI stated.

The deceased’s husband was arrested as the homicide detectives continued with investigations into the woman’s mysterious death.