- Thirty-year-old John Achoka would have died alongside his associates had he been in Nairobi on December 24
- He was part of a gang that police say terrorised civilians in parts of Nairobi and Kiambu counties, where they undertook robbery activities
- Four members of the gang were felled by bullets in Nairobi's Buruburu area on Christmas Eve before the attackers fled the scene
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Nairobi - An associate of the gang of four men who were killed in Buruburu narrowly escaped death by travelling upcountry before his colleagues were shot on Christmas Eve, it has emerged.
The quartet of men was shot on the evening of December 24 by unknown attackers.
They sustained multiple gunshot wounds, succumbing at the scene, and their bodies were ferried to the City Mortuary.
Achuka is Marked gang member, police say
The gang comprised Brian Mwangi, Julius Mwangi, Francis Kamau, and Benson Mwangi.
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John Achoka, the fifth member, had travelled to his rural home at the time of the shooting.
According to police, Achoka had been marked as a member of the group that allegedly participated in burglary, theft, and robberies in parts of Nairobi and Kiambu counties.
They featured in the same charge sheets and would be detained together after being apprehended in connection with criminal acts, sources told Citizen TV.
Given that they stuck together throughout, Achoka might have been among the deceased, but travelling upcountry happened to be his saving grace.
The four goners, according to police, were hardened criminals and had been released from prison in November, sources close to the investigation revealed.
Dark past of the murdered Buruburu quartet
They would be armed with daggers and guns; and a preliminary probe into their deaths suggests they had a firearm rivalry.
According to police, the deceased, who partnered in all their criminal undertakings, had been released from prison in November.
One of their alleged robbery activities was early this year when they broke into a pharmaceutical business in Athi River, where they made away with items valued at over KSh 690,000.
They would later terrorise the residents of Tassia in Embakasi.
They were charged in April and jailed in the Athi River GK Prisons until November, when they secured their freedom, oblivious to the tragic end awaiting them.
Police further established that the gang hired vehicles they used in their terror activities.
Status of investigations
Nairobi police boss Adamson Bungei said investigators had not yet established the motive or those behind the shooting.
A Buruburu local said they heard gunshots, and when they checked, they found the young men dead.
“We were called by neighbours who heard the gunshots and mistook it to be fireworks, only to find the bodies there,” said Bungei.
He disclosed that three bodies were found outside the car they had and one inside.
The four were driving a Suzuki Swift that was sprayed with several bullets, immobilising the men.
The incident happened one km away from Buruburu Police Station. Police recovered two daggers from one of the deceased.
Postmortem findings
An autopsy conducted on two of the four bodies indicated the men died after losing a lot of blood.
The deceased comprised a duo of cousins Brian and Julius Mwangi.
According to the autopsy, Brian sustained a total of 12 gunshot wounds, with his cousin taking in six rounds.
The third body is that of Benson Mwangi, who sustained five gunshot wounds.
The fourth body remained unidentified and unclaimed as of the time of publishing this.
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