This archive report was first published on 12 November 2021.
On November 12, 2021, the Embu Law Courts handed down a 30-year prison sentence to Michael Mutunga, the main suspect in the brutal killing of Catholic priest Michael Kyengo.
According to court documents, Mutunga confessed to killing the clergyman on the night between October 8 and 9, 2019. At the time, Mutunga was a university student.
The priest's body was discovered in a shallow grave on the riverbed of Mashamba seasonal river in Makina location, about 15 kilometres from Gategi shopping centre in Mbeere, Embu County.
On October 8, 2019, Father Michael Kyengo, who was serving at Thatha Catholic parish in Masinga, Machakos county, left home in Tala at around 5pm, headed to Gategi shopping centre in Embu, approximately 128 kilometres from Tala.
Unbeknownst to him, Mutunga had planned to kill him for over two months and was leading him to a death trap. He had bought a gunny bag and a sharp knife way back in August, and was only waiting for the perfect time to strike.
Moments later, the priest was forced into his vehicle with his hands tied using a rope. He was driven to Mashamba seasonal river, 15 kilometres from Gategi shopping centre where the suspect strangled him before slitting his neck using a knife.
