‘I was stripped naked, starved, beaten daily’: Bernard Kavuli recounts 15-day abduction ordeal

One of the five abductees released by their captors on January 6th, Bernard Kavuli, has recounted the ordeal at the hands of his abductors.

Kavuli who narrated how he was held naked, beaten, and denied food by his abductors for the 15 days in custody, says there were more youths being held at the house from where he was released.

He spoke on Wednesday as he received a heroic welcome in his hometown village of Kalamba Muyo, Mwingi North, in Kitui County.

Boda boda operators led the pack, business came to a standstill in the dusty village as villagers came out in big numbers to welcome their son. Their first stop was at his home church before the official ceremony at the local market.

Feeling safe at home, Kavuli for the first time shared his ordeal at the hands of the abductors to residents in the local dialect.

"I was blindfolded. They took me to a very dark room and held me there for four or five days naked. They used to slap me and beat me on my back using their fists day and night. They were not giving me food. I only drank water for two days out of the five days they held me captive. Then they shaved my head by force," he explained.

Kavuli says he was held in two places — one where he stayed for five days and another place where he stayed for ten days and which he believes is inside a forest.

They were being held in two blocks, and he remembers interacting with other abductees who have since been released.

"We were separated and locked in different rooms. When they were transporting us, I was with Peter Muteti, one of the other boys who had been abducted. I kept praying to God to keep me safe and take me back home safe and alive," Kavuli noted.

The inhuman treatment at the hands of his captors led to Kavuli losing six kilograms. He has urged Kenyans to keep demanding the release of other abductees who he says are still being held by their abductors against their will.

"Kulingana na usemi wa Bwana Bernard Kavuli mahali alienda kuwekwa mahali pa pili, mahali alikaa kwa siku 10, pale kulikuwa na watu wengine, watu pengine takriban 30 ambao wamefungiwa pale. Naomba Rais aweze kuamuru wale wengine wameshikwa waweze kuachiliwa," Kavuli's lawyer Shadrack Wambui said.

His sister Scholar Mwende added: "Kama ni mtu amefanya makosa achukuliwe hatua inayofaa hata kama ni kupelekwa kortini ukae ukijua mtoto wako amefungwa jela. Sikukaa hujui mahali mtoto wako ako, wazazi wanakaa na mateso mingi sana."

Kavuli was abducted on December 22nd, 2024, at a petrol station in Ngong and released 15 days later on January 6th in Uasin Gishu County.