This archive report was first published on 10 May 2021.
Kevin Machuki, a 14-year-old Form One student at Nyaisa SDA Mixed Day and Boarding School in Nyamira, has been missing for over three months. His family is desperately searching for him, and the school administration is facing criticism for its handling of the situation.
According to his mother, Jane Mirambo, the family was not aware that Kevin was missing until two days after schools closed for the Easter holidays in 2021. She said they reported his disappearance at Sengera Police Station on April 23, 2021, under OB 7/23/0/2021.
The school administration claims that Kevin was allowed to leave school on January 10, 2021, to attend a funeral at home. However, his sister-in-law, Anne Kemunto, denies this, saying that there was no funeral at home that year. She also claims that the school administration did not try to reach Kevin's mother on the phone to inform her of her son's departure.
The school principal, Tobias Omollo, said that they sent a text message to Kevin's mother informing her that he had been allowed to leave school. However, he claims that she did not respond to the message, and they were unable to reach her on the phone.
Omollo also claims that Kevin's mother did not inquire about his progress or even drop off pocket money for him when she visited the school on February 2, 2021, to pay Sh4,000 in fees. However, the mother disputes this, saying that the students were sitting exams on that day and that was why she did not inquire about her son.
Exams were actually conducted between February 9 and February 12, 2021, not on February 2, as the mother claimed. The police have forwarded the case file to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) for further action.
Kevin's family is appealing to anyone who may have information on his whereabouts to come forward and report to any police station.
