Fear and Tension in Mwingi After Four Bodies Recovered from Suspected Mass Grave
Police and forensic experts have launched investigations to identify the victims and establish the circumstances surrounding their deaths, while local leaders call for calm amid growing security concerns.
Police officers and forensic experts at the scene near Kasina Primary School in Mwingi, where four bodies were recovered from shallow graves during an ongoing investigation. Photo/Courtesy
By Samwel Oyondi
People in Mwingi are living in fear these days, after four bodies were found placed in shallow graves near Kasina Primary School, a troubling episode that has ignited worries over safety and the whole issue of unexplained deaths in the place.
The bodies were brought out on Tuesday, residents say they alerted the authorities after noticing, a strong foul smell and some odd movement around that area.
Police officers together with forensic specialists moved to the scene and started an excavation, routine that eventually led to the recovery of four bodies from separate shallow graves.
Investigators noted that the remains were at different levels of decomposition, so, quick identification was not easy, at all.
“The bodies have been recovered and investigations are ongoing to establish the names of the victims and the circumstances around their deaths,” said Antony Maina, who is steering the investigations.
“We are working to determine the real cause of death and we urge families with missing relatives to come forward and report to the police so we can help in the identification,” he added.
This grim find has pushed anxiety higher among local residents, many saying they are worried for their personal security and they want answers from those in charge.
“People are living in fear because no one knows who, could be behind these killings,” said a resident, speaking at the scene.
Local leaders asked for calm as detectives keep combing the area, with worries that maybe more bodies could be buried nearby.
The case is coming while concerns continue rising over killings, and over bodies being dumped in remote places across the country, something human rights groups say, has increased insecurity and fear in communities.
Officials said they have not shut the door on any line of investigation, and they are expected to depend on forensic findings and witness accounts to understand what happened, exactly.
The recovered bodies were moved to Mwingi General Hospital Mortuary, for postmortem checks and then further identification steps.
Police have asked members of the public to share any information, however small, that may help investigators, as efforts continue to piece together the circumstances behind the deaths.
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