Key suspect in murder of DCI detective in Kayole arrested

Constable David Mayaka was on August 10, shot dead by three armed robbers in Kayole, Nairobi County, while changing a flat tyre in the company of his wife. 

CCTV footage showed his killers driving by on a motorcycle, opening fire and shooting Mayaka in the abdomen, as well as shooting his wife Hellen Kemunto in the leg. 

According to a DCI statement issued on Tuesday, Alex Wanjiru, 23, was flushed out of his hideout at his grandmother's home in Ruthingiti, Kiambu County, and his getaway motorcycle was impounded.

Wanjiru fled Kayole immediately after allegedly committing the crime, according to the DCI, and was apprehended following a joint operation by detectives from the elite Crime Research & Intelligence Bureau based at the DCI Nairobi regional command.

The getaway motorbike used in Mayaka's murder was also impounded in an earlier probe.

"This is after conducting thorough forensic investigations that placed the suspect and his accomplices at the scene of the incident, at the exact time of the murder," he said.

DCI further noted that a ballistic report has since linked the firearm used in the crime to five robbery incidents in the city.

Meanwhile, a further manhunt is on for two other suspects who are still at large.

"So far, detectives have also identified the two other thugs involved in the murder most foul.  They are the main suspect Henry Njihia who fired the shots that took detective Mayaka’s life and John Kamau aka Faruk, who is also armed with a glock pistol."