Ongata Rongai Woman Inconsolable After Missing 4-Year-Old Son Is Found Dead: "You Left Me Too Early"

• Four-year-old Brandon Maliba was last seen on December 20 while playing with his friends near his parents home in Tuala on the outskirts of Ongata Rongai town
• His mother, Nancy Sifuna, later uploaded his photos on social media, seeking help toward his whereabouts
• Sadly, the youngster's decaying body would later be found in a garbage pit on 2023 Christmas Eve, all indications pointing to murder

Eli Odaga, a journalist at TUKO.co.ke, brings over three years of experience covering politics and current affairs in Kenya.

Kajiado county - Nancy Sifuna and her husband are mourning their toddler son, who was found dead four days after going missing.

Four-year-old Brandon Maliba was last seen on December 20, playing with his friends near their home in Tuala.

His horrified mother, in her bid to trace him, uploaded his photos on social media, seeking help from Kenyans to help locate him.

"I am looking for my son. He got lost yesterday (Wednesday, December 20) at 4:00 pm until now he is nowhere to be found. He is aged four and he knows his parents by their names and he knows his name too. Please, family, help me to look for him, he is the only kid that I have. I am so stressed," appealed a jaded Nancy.

She had reported the matter to the local police.

Decomposing body

The frantic search for a young Brandon ended in horror, as his decaying body was found inside a garbage pit on December 24.

Nancy told TUKO.co.ke that despite Brandon's visibly deformed face, she was able to positively identify it given the clothes it was in were familiar to her.

"I know my child. Just from seeing I would have known it was him. Even the clothes he had I knew them. It seems he was strangled and died," she said.

The body was ferried to the City Mortuary ahead of postmortem.

According to the distraught mother, her child might have been strangled by his tormentors, going by the visible signs on the body.

She appealed to Kenyans of goodwill to help her go through the postmortem process and later burial.

"We are not in a good financial position now. We have been asked KSh 15,000 for postmortem which we are struggling to raise. We also should prepare to take the body to Kitale for burial. I ask Kenyans to come to our aid," she said, adding that help could be channelled through 0703516116 or 0702728510.

A WhatsApp group has been created to mobilise help towards Brandon's send-off.

Kakamega woman shot by rogue police officer

Elsewhere, the businesswoman whom a police officer fatally shot at an entertainment joint in Nakuru was laid to rest in an emotional send-off ceremony on December 23.

Laura Atamba Kwasira was buried at her parents' rural home in Shinyalu Constituency, Kakamega County.

Her father, Josephat Kwasira, while demanding justice, asked the government to establish firm criteria to be used in assigning firearms to police officers.

"My experience tells me that this is more painful than losing a father or a mother. We kindly request that the government know to whom to give the arms to avoid such occurrences to our beautiful girls and boys," he said.

Laura's mother, Tabitha Kwasira, said her daughter suffered severe injuries to her internal organs, and her survival would have meant she endured immense pain.

“My daughter was very hurt, and just as we thought that she would get better after her surgery, she did not. I decided to witness my daughter’s postmortem because I was not getting quality reports on what killed her. Her stomach, intestines, pancreas, bladder, and uterus were destroyed so even if she had lived, she would have suffered,” Tabitha said.

Laura, survived by two children, succumbed to gunshot wounds by a police officer at her business premises on December 13.

How KSh 16k bill led to fatal shooting in Nakuru

Identified as Nicholas Musau, based at Nakuru Central Police Station, shot dead a barmaid at Vega Club.

During the altercation, three other people were injured, among them Laura, and were rushed to the Nakuru Level 5 Hospital.

According to the police report, Musau picked up a quarrel with the barmaid, who had demanded that he clear a bill of KSh 16,000 for the drinks he had taken.

Following the argument, the suspect opened fire, fatally injuring the barmaid, identified as Ann Maina, and leaving three others with bullet wounds before fleeing.

The officer was later arrested and locked up at Kaptebwa Police Station. A pistol with two rounds of ammunition and six spent cartridges were recovered.