This archive report was first published on 25 October 2019.
On October 25, 2019, detectives made a breakthrough in the murder case of Catholic Priest Michael Maingi Kyengo, who was killed in Embu County.
46-year-old Kavivya Mwangangi was arrested on Thursday in Gategi area, Embu County following the interrogation of Michael Muthini Mutunga, the prime suspect in the killing of the priest.
Upon questioning, Mwangangi confessed to being a member of a cult named Illuminati Official Clun that is based in Sandton City, Johannesburg, South Africa, according to The Standard.
He also provided details of the cult’s website and log-in credentials that helped detectives retrieve an application filled in by Mutunga in September 2018, Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) said in a statement.
According to the application, Mutunga had expressed his desire to join the cult to become financially stable and help the community eradicate poverty.
However, police believe that members of the cult are required to sacrifice a close relative or friend as a condition to increase their wealth. Father Kyengo was a long-time friend of the two suspects, with Mutunga telling police that he was in a gay relationship with the deceased.
Police have recovered a knife, blood-stained clothes, and other items from Mutunga’s rented house in Embu, where they believe the priest was killed.
On Thursday, the court allowed police to hold suspect Mutunga for 10 days for investigations into the killing to be completed.
