Detectives in Nairobi are investigating the mysterious death of 54-year-old Zaituni Kavaya, a domestic worker from Kibera, who died while on duty at an apartment along Mpunga Road in Kilimani.

Kavaya had been contracted to do laundry on the fifth floor of the building when the incident occurred. Five suspects, all from a Sudanese family, have since been arrested and are being held at Kilimani Police Station as investigations continue.

Her family says they received the devastating news through a phone call from police after attempts to reach her went unanswered.

“I was told to go to the station. I carried the tea I had prepared for her, thinking she would still need it. But when I arrived, they broke the news that my mother had died,” her daughter, Faith, recounted.

According to documents presented in court during the suspects’ detention hearing, the incident is linked to a dispute over missing money.

The family’s defense lawyer claimed that a son of the household accused Kavaya of stealing cash from a pair of trousers she had washed. He allegedly called her back after she had already left the residence. She denied the accusation, but as the matter escalated, she reportedly tried to flee and fell from the balcony.

The Kavaya family strongly disputes this account.

“When I went to collect her belongings from the DCI office, all she had was Ksh.160, a dress, slippers and rubbers. Nothing else. She had already finished work, but was called back only to end up dead,” Faith said.

A postmortem conducted at the Nairobi City Mortuary showed that Kavaya died from multiple injuries caused by blunt force trauma.

Her relatives are now demanding justice.

“I want the truth because she was everything to us. We have no one else to turn to,” Faith added tearfully. Another family member urged authorities to act firmly, saying, “Foreigners should not be allowed to kill our people in Kenya. If this continues, where do we run?”

Police say investigations are ongoing as they piece together the events leading to Kavaya’s death.