Police in Eldoret arrested the best friend of LGBTQ activist Edwin Chiloba on Friday, January 6.
Officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigation (DCI) revealed that the friend was treated as the prime suspect in line with potential leads.
Detectives also reportedly arrested the caretaker, who was questioned after recording a statement.
Reports indicated that the prime suspect was his best friend, with who he worked and lived in Eldoret. He was also a Nairobi-based freelance photographer.
Uasin Gishu county DCI boss, Peter Kimulwo, noted that investigators questioned the suspects to establish the motive behind the murder. So far, they had not established why the activist was brutally killed.
According to Eldoret police officers, the suspect was murdered in his apartment, room No 11m, within the Kimumu area.
"We suspect the noise heard earlier by the neighbours was the time the deceased was killed", Kimulwo explained.
Police clarified that area residents discovered Chiloba's body wrapped in a woman’s dress in the metal box. The body was not immediately identified since it lacked documents before moving to Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH) morgue.
DCI officers closely followed the potential leads after collecting vital intelligence on suspects and victims. Chiloba reportedly accompanied his friends to Tamasha club and returned at around 3 am on New Year's eve, the last time he was seen alive.
Neighbours reportedly told investigators that they were alarmed by the commotion and cries, which subsided after a few minutes. The neighbours also claimed they saw a vehicle with two people loading what appeared to be a metal box.
On Friday, January 6, Chiloba's adoptive parents expressed sadness, grief and anger following the unfortunate murder of their son.
Chiloba's mother, Donna Pfaltzgraff, promised to share more details of the incident in the coming days, even as she asked Kenyans to pray for the family.
"Our hearts are broken tonight. We will give more details when we can share more."
The LGBTQ community, as well as a number of local and international Human Rights organisations, asked the police to apprehend suspects behind the attack.
