A shocking twist has emerged in the murder investigation of Multimedia University (MMU) student Sylvia Kemunto, following the arrest of the prime suspect, Philip Eric Mutinda. Authorities have recovered Kemunto’s mobile phone from a church in Nairobi, where Mutinda allegedly offered it as a donation shortly after her death. This bizarre act has provided detectives with a significant breakthrough in the ongoing probe.
According to investigators, Mutinda admitted to police that he and Kemunto had been in a relationship marked by ongoing disputes. On March 30, he visited her room in an attempt to reconcile. However, their meeting turned violent. Mutinda allegedly pushed Kemunto against a wall and a bed before strangling her with a rope from a hoodie. The impact reportedly caused severe head injuries. Following the fatal assault, Mutinda is said to have placed Kemunto’s body in a suitcase and transported it to his own room.
In a disturbing sequence of events, he covered the body with a blanket and left for a walk. He returned roughly 40 minutes later and moved the body back into the suitcase before sleeping. At approximately 4 a.m. on March 31, he transferred the suitcase containing the body into a water tank at the university. Later, he removed Kemunto’s SIM card and disposed of it within the campus grounds but retained the mobile phone.
Investigators revealed that Mutinda then took the phone to a church in Nairobi, presenting it as an offering. Following this, he traveled to his family’s home, where he reportedly confessed the crime to his parents. They subsequently escorted him to the police station in Sultan Hamud, where he surrendered.
Law enforcement officers, acting on Mutinda’s confession, raided the church and recovered the phone. They confirmed through interrogation of church officials that the phone had indeed been given by Mutinda. This recovery marked a critical point in the murder investigation.
An autopsy conducted on Kemunto’s body revealed that she died from strangulation and had also sustained blunt-force trauma to the head. Medical examiners also noted defensive wounds, suggesting that she attempted to resist her attacker during the assault. The body, discovered on April 2 in a water tank atop the university’s Block B Hostel, had begun to decompose.
The postmortem was carried out at Montezuma Funeral Home on April 8 and was attended by both police officers and Kemunto’s family. The results underscored the brutality of the attack and supported the police’s narrative of events.
Mutinda is currently in custody at Capital Hill Police Station. A Kibera magistrate has ordered his detention until April 28 to give the Directorate of Criminal Investigations additional time to complete their investigation.
Kemunto had been reported missing by her mother on April 1. Her body was located a day later by the university’s security team during a search. Lawyers representing the victim’s family have urged the court to recognize the case as part of a disturbing trend of femicide in the country. They criticized the university’s safety measures, raising concerns over student security on campus.
The incident has sparked outrage and renewed calls for increased protection of women, especially within academic institutions that should provide a safe environment for students.
