A man who had been missing since Sunday has been found dead beneath his bed in his rented house at Ndindiruku village in Mwea, Kirinyaga County, in a suspected murder allegedly involving his lover of two weeks.
The body of 40-year-old Peter Munene was discovered after neighbours raised concerns over a foul smell emanating from the house.
According to Joseph Kabacu, a friend of the deceased who had rented him the house, the two had spent Sunday together at a local bar before Munene returned home with his new lover.
Kabacu said he later heard the couple quarrelling at around midnight and warned them against continuing the altercation.
"I told them that if they continued fighting, I would chase them away. They kept quiet," he said.
The following morning, Kabacu said he asked the woman about Munene's whereabouts, only to be told that he had gone out. The two men regularly worked together as casual labourers.
However, suspicions grew after the house remained locked with a new padlock, while Munene was nowhere to be seen.
Kabacu said the matter was brought to the attention of the village administrator after residents noticed a strong smell coming from the house.
Village in-charge Kilonzo Musyoka said he was called to the homestead after being alerted about the stench. He subsequently informed Kiarukungu Location Chief Henry Kariuki, who contacted officers from Wang'uru Police Station.
Police officers who responded to the incident broke into the house and began searching for the source of the smell.
They eventually discovered Munene's decomposing body tucked beneath the bed in a corner and covered with a nylon sack.
"When police broke in, we searched where the smell was coming from and found Peter Munene's body under the bed, in a corner of the bed, covered with a nylon sack," Musyoka said.
Neighbours, led by Josephine Karitu, expressed shock at the discovery, saying they had been wondering about Munene's whereabouts after failing to see him in the village.
"We had been calling him 'One Term', and we are shocked to hear he had been killed by his lover and put under a bed in his rented house," Karitu said.
Munene's brother, Patrick Njenga, said the deceased was unmarried, despite speculation among villagers that he had recently started a relationship.
Njenga called for justice, appealing to residents to assist authorities in tracking down the woman suspected of being involved in his brother's death.
"I want justice for my brother," he said.
Kiarukungu Location Chief Henry Kariuki said the woman was not known in the village and had since gone missing. He urged residents to volunteer information that could assist investigators in tracing and arresting her.
The chief also called on landlords to maintain proper records of their tenants, including details of people occupying their rental properties, to assist authorities in security-related investigations.
Detectives visited the scene as investigations into the suspected murder commenced. The body was subsequently moved to the mortuary, where it awaits a postmortem examination to establish the cause of death.
Police are pursuing leads to establish the circumstances surrounding Munene's death and the whereabouts of the woman believed to have been living with him.
