How police nabbed ‘serial rapist’ in Jennifer Wambua’s murder probe

The suspect preyed on the deceased as she prayed, before he made his move to sexually assault her and strangle her to death.

Police have narrated how they nabbed the suspect involved in National Land Commission Jennifer Wambua’s murder.

DCI director George Kinoti said homicide detectives through a painstaking forensic dragnet which involved Peter Mwangi alias Ole Sankale’s sister made the arrest possible.

Kinoti said the detectives through criminal intelligence first forensically placed the suspect at the scene of crime.

“They managed to establish eyewitnesses who saw the suspect with the deceased the last time she was seen alive on March 12th 2021,” Kinoti said.

Sankale was seen at the scene and thorough repeat combing of the scene they stealthily managed to pick crucial exhibits.

“The forensic results are finally out, positively matching the suspect,” Kinoti said on Saturday.

In a murder most foul, the deceased’s body had been found half naked by detectives, who suspected that she had been sexually assaulted, before being murdered in cold blood.

Previous convictions of the suspect./DCI
Previous convictions of the suspect./DCI

A report issued by the government pathologist confirmed that there was sexual contact with her killer/s.

“Following detailed forensic investigations, detectives established that the suspect had indeed interacted and spent quite some time with the deceased at the location where the body was later discovered.,” Kinoti said.

“It was also established that the area is often visited by pilgrims for spiritual intentions. ”

According to the police, the suspect preyed on the deceased as she prayed, before he made his move to sexually assault her and strangle her to death.

“It was confirmed that the suspect was a jailbird. Our criminal data system was mined and indeed confirmed the suspect had committed similar offences using the same modus operandi of committing robbery and thereafter repeatedly, sexually abusing the victims by raping and killing them,” Kinoti said.

Both the Principal criminal registrar records and Prisons where the suspect served jail concurred.

Kinoti said the search was intensified and through the previous finalized criminal files, detectives were able to establish similar crimes committed in replica signature style and manner of subjection to torture and rape.

Detectives found several other reported cases of the same nature committed by the same suspect and in particular within the same vicinity where he committed the crime.

The suspect was found to have had several previous criminal records.

In 1996, he was charged with stealing and was further charged three times with the offences of robbery with violence and rape.

In January 15, 2003, he was convicted and sentenced to death at Kibera Senior Resident’s Magistrate Court.

“How he won his freedom remains a mystery, which the detectives are currently engaged in demystifying,” Kinoti added.

Before her demise, Wambua had been advised by a pastor to go to a thicket in Ngong to pray for her problems to go away.

That was the day she died. She was a state witness in a Sh122 million corruption case. 

The pastor has been questioned by police and they said he revealed he had spoken to her on the day she went away and met her death. He was among those who spoke to her on that day.

Police investigators said after it was after Wambua had finished her prayers that she met two other suspects in the murder probe.

She drank water police said they believe was laced with chemicals. It was not immediately known if Njenga gave her the water.

Wambua was laid to rest last month.

A postmortem exercise on the body showed she was strangled using bare hands.

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