A 32-year-old father, Michael Oworo, was brutally stabbed to death while escorting his three-year-old son to a daycare center in Mathare slums, Nairobi. The macabre murder unfolded in front of the child, who stood a few meters away, crying and unsure of what to do as his father succumbed to the fatal attack.
Locals reported hearing commotion and screams before finding Oworo lying in a pool of blood on the dusty road. According to police and witnesses, the victim had been preparing to drop off his son before heading to a construction site where he worked as a mason to support his small family.
Preliminary investigations suggest the attack occurred during an attempted robbery. Oworo, a single father since his son was three months old, may have resisted the assailant, leading to the fatal stabbing. He sustained a chest wound believed to have been inflicted by a sharp object.
At the scene, a lunch box meant for the child lay scattered on the ground, its contents—ugali and omena spilling onto the road. Neighbors who rushed to assist found the traumatized child crying near his father’s body. An ambulance was called, but Oworo was pronounced dead at the scene.
The assailant, reportedly known to locals, is currently being pursued by the police. Nairobi’s head of DCI, Benson Kasyoki, assured residents that detectives are actively investigating the case.
Residents of Mathare 4A protested the rising insecurity in the area, temporarily blocking police officers from retrieving Oworo’s body. The situation escalated into a standoff, with locals expressing outrage over repeated criminal activities. One resident, Felix Popo, highlighted the victim’s struggles as a casual laborer trying to provide for his child.
“He wanted to feed his son, and that is why he went to the construction sites to get a living. This must be addressed,” said Popo, who works to reform youth in the area.
After negotiations, officers managed to retrieve the body and transport it to the Nairobi Funeral Home. Meanwhile, calls for enhanced security in Mathare have intensified as residents demand swift justice for Oworo and safer conditions for families in the area.
The incident underscores the dire need to address insecurity in Nairobi’s informal settlements, where innocent lives are too often disrupted by violent crime.
