The wheels of justice turn painfully slow in Kenya. And when it is a case of murder, it can take years before a victim and their family find justice. This elusive justice is what the family of the late Catherine Nyokabi has been chasing for more than one year.
Catherine was brutally murdered at the age of 25 by her lover Evans Karani. When Karani was arrested for the murder, he confessed that she had killed her in cold blood, and even admonished the court to give him a swift sentence. But since his initial appearances in court, this case has been gradually dragging its feet, the files gathering cobwebs in the murky corridors that form Kenya’s justice system. This even as Catherine’s family continue struggling with the loss of their daughter whose life was ended in the most brutal manner imaginable.
When Karani was asked why he did it, he had one of the coldest answers: it was me in her life or nobody else!
Karani said that he loved Catherine so hard that when it became apparent that she was seeing another man, he laid a trap, strangled her to death, and then mutilated her body.
Karani, who was married, had made this confession in front of his wife. He had said that he had asked Catherine to delete a photo of her alleged lover because it hurt his feelings in April 2021.
I was ashamed to see my daughter trending in torn uniform
Catherine had declined to get rid of the photo. At first, Karani said that he thought of dumping her but later changed his mind. He couldn’t lose her to another man, he said.
He then laid a trap. He asked to meet her in Ndarugo. Catherine obliged and walked into Karani’s death trap. He bought alcohol which he shared with her. When she was completely intoxicated, he strangled her using his belt and then a rope.
After killing her, Karani drove to Tola Estate in Witeithie, Juja constituency. It is here that he intended to dump Catherine’s body. However, his car got stuck in the mud before he could finish the job. Out of option, Karani mutilated the body and dumped it in the mud.
It was also suspected that he had doused Catherine in corrosive chemicals. Her body was badly mutilated on face and head too.