Four suspects have been detained by police for kidnapping a female student from Kabarak University and holding her captive for five days against her will.
A Fourth Year student at the Nakuru-based institution named Daisy Chebet Barno went missing on January 26, 2023, and was found on January 31.
Faith Mwende, one of Daisy’s female classmates, allegedly conspired with her 39-year-old boyfriend, Simon Akuteka, and two other people, John Mbau, 38, and Elijah Chege, 31, to kidnap her and extort a ransom from her family.
Akuteka reportedly invited Daisy to lunch on the day of the incident and assured her that Mwende would join them later.
“Daisy obliged and got inside Akuteka’s car, which police later discovered belonged to a car hire agent headquartered in Nairobi,” the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) said in a statement.
“Akuteka excused himself to pick up a package and got into the automobile, heading for Kabarak. He abruptly halted the car along the road, and two men climbed inside.”
The group alerted Daisy’s family of her situation before demanding a Ksh. 600,000 ransom.
Afterward, they traveled to Ruiru, Kiambu County, where they rented a two-bedroom Airbnb and imprisoned Daisy in one of the bedrooms.
They would subsequently be joined by Mwende at the Airbnb. Daisy’s family paid the kidnappers an initial Ksh.50,000 in hopes of getting their loved ones back while they sought for the full ransom. According to reports, the suspects happily awaited the remaining money while they ate up the pay-off.
According to the DCI, “unbeknownst to the criminals, detectives who had received a distress call from Daisy’s family were closely watching their movements as they roamed between Thika, Murang’a, Kajiado, and Ruiru during the day, in an attempt to outwit the authorities.”
However, detectives from the DCI’s Crime Research and Intelligence Bureau were able to locate the kidnappers before traveling to the Airbnb where the suspects were hiding out.
“A brief altercation ensued as the sleuths identified themselves to the criminals after they refused to surrender and engaged the detectives in a fistfight,” the DCI stated.
After the effective raid, which was assisted by detectives from DCI Nakuru and Ruiru, all four suspects were apprehended, and Daisy was rescued.
The suspects’ possessions included a sellotape, a rope, numerous SIM cards, mobile phones, and the victim’s ID card.
The DCI further disclosed that Akuteka, Mbau, and Chege are repeat criminals who have numerous court cases pending against them.
Daisy has been reunited with her family and the quartet will stay in detention pending arraignment.
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