This archive report was first published on 20 October 2019.
On October 20, 2019, a gruesome discovery was made in Embu, Kenya, when the body of Catholic priest Michael Kyengo was found buried in a shallow grave, eight days after he went missing from his home in Matungulu, Machakos County.
A post-mortem examination revealed that Father Kyengo succumbed to stab wounds.
During questioning, the prime suspect, a 25-year-old nursery school-trained teacher, made a startling claim: he was in a romantic relationship with the priest.
According to investigators, the suspect's mobile phone contained romantic text messages between him and Father Kyengo, with the two referring to each other as 'Hi dear' and 'hi my love'.
On Thursday, detectives from the Special Crimes Prevention Unit traveled to Gaitegi village in Embu County, where they confirmed that the priest was murdered inside a rented house belonging to the suspect.
They also recovered a knife from a latrine in the suspect's home, which police believe is the murder weapon.
A neighbor reported that the suspect, who is not married, is a staunch Catholic and a member of the local church choir.
Separately, a boda boda operator in Kirinyaga was arrested in connection with the murder, as he was believed to have driven Father Kyengo's vehicle from Embu to Malindi on the night of October 9th.
