On August 10, Mercy Wambui, 40, left her home excited to visit her two-month-old granddaughter in Free Area, Nakuru County.

Wambui was a devoted mother and grandmother, always present in her children’s lives. She took pleasure in carrying both their joys and their burdens as her own.

But that day she never made it back home. Four days later, her body was found in River Ndarugu, two kilometres from her house in Piave, Njoro sub-county.

Now, her family is left grappling with painful questions about who killed Wambui, and why. 

In an interview with the Daily Nation on Wednesday, Wambui’s daughter, Florence Wanjiku, recalled their final moments together.

Wambui arrived at Wanjiku’s home around noon that day accompanied by her younger children. They shared lunch, laughed and bonded after months apart.

“She even volunteered to wash the baby as she shared motherly advice,” Ms Wanjiku recounted.

That evening, Wambui said goodbye, leaving behind her 14-year-old son and seven-year-old daughter, promising to return to Njoro.

“She left around 6:30pm. I made sure she boarded a matatu to Nakuru town. I called her at 7:24 pm and she said she was already in town, waiting for another matatu to Njoro. At 8pm, she was yet to board a matatu but told me not to worry, that she would call later. When I woke up at 9pm and tried calling again, her phone was off,” Wanjiku recalled.

At first, Ms Wanjiku was not alarmed. Her mother had mentioned that her phone battery was low, so she assumed she would recharge and call back. But when the phone remained off the next day, panic set in.

By Monday, Wambui was still unreachable. The family began searching frantically, contacting relatives and friends across Nakuru. Her husband, Charles Kibe, who was working in Narok, returned home to join the search party.

“With the help of neighbours, we searched the roads and nearby areas. Every evening we gathered at her home to pray for safe return. But hope slowly gave way to fear,” said Ms Wanjiku.

On Tuesday, the search party found one of Wambui’s shoes and a leso along the riverbank but heavy rains halted further efforts.

On Wednesday, their worst fears were confirmed. Her lifeless body was retrieved from River Ndarugu, partially submerged in shallow waters, tangled in debris. However, her phone was missing.

“I was there during the search. It was heartbreaking to identify her body. I cannot understand why anyone would do that to her. Death has robbed me of a partner who was a homemaker, hardworking, and who loved her family deeply,” said Mr Kibe.

A postmortem conducted at Egerton University mortuary revealed that Wambui had been manually strangled. Doctors also found a blood clot in her head, broken ribs, a stab wound on her face and evidence of sexual assault.

“When we found her body, she was unrecognisable. Her face was badly damaged. Her daughter, who had last seen her had to confirm it was her. Someone knows what happened. We need answers. We need justice,” said her aunt, Miriam Wanjiru.

Wambui’s relatives are now calling for speedy investigations, noting that insecurity in the area has worsened.

“Cases of insecurity have been rising. Just last month, a man heading home from church was killed, and his body dumped in the river. A granny was also attacked in her home, sexually assaulted, and murdered — yet no arrests have been made. Residents are living in fear. We need police patrols and security lights installed,” said Mary Muthoni, another relative.

On Tuesday, mourners gathered at Wambui’s home for burial preparations. She will be laid to rest on Friday. 

Njoro Sub-county Police Commander Stanley Koech said they have launched investigation into the murder and that several people, including the family members, have recorded statements.

“The matter is under investigation, we are following a crucial leads,” he said.