Vincent Kariuki narrowly escaped death on Monday night by jumping into a river after he encountered four armed men along Thika Road.
Speaking to Kenyans.co.ke on Tuesday, Kariuki revealed that he was forced to save his life at around midnight after the armed men drew their weapons and threatened to shoot him.
His ordeal began at Ruiru when he was approached by a customer at around 8:30 pm seeking to be driven to Kenyatta Road for Ksh2,000.
On the way, the passenger informed Kariuki that they would be picking up two others on their way.
The duo boarded the vehicle, and Kariuki drove to Kenyatta Road before he was asked to drive towards the Murera area, a few kilometres from Thika Road.
"I sensed that these people were up to no good so I told them my vehicle could not go any further since the road was in a bad state. They convinced me that we were almost there and that I should continue driving," he stated.
A few minutes later, they drew their pistols on him, ordering him to stop or lose his life. He parked the car on the side of the road, and they exchanged seats with one of the armed men.
The suspects also sandwiched him between two men in the back to prevent him from running away before they drove for a short distance and stopped at a dark area. Here, they blew a whistle, and a fourth member appeared out of the darkness.
"They asked me if my car had any tracking device and I told them no. The new guy took the car and drove off, I was left with the armed men," he added.
Kariuki recalled that they led him toward someone's farm and ordered him to ask for money from his relatives. He called his friends and family, who sent the funds that were transferred to the culprits.
"They must have taken more than Ksh100,000 including my savings. But they made an error in one transaction and the money went to the wrong person," he stated.
The driver revealed that this caused a confrontation between the trio giving him a window to escape as they had dropped their weapons.
At minutes past midnight, Kariuki ran for his life without a clear direction on where he was heading. Beaten and bruised, he jumped into a nearby river to escape, unbothered by the depth.
He swam to the other end and continued running, taking off excess clothes that were slowing him down. Kariuki, by chance, found his way to Muigai Inn Police Post, where he filed a report before contacting his family which came to his rescue.
"The police informed us that the matter was under investigation and they will share any developments with us," he told Kenyans.co.ke.
He later revealed that the vehicle had been seen in Dandora appealing for help from the public.
