Police in Baringo County are looking into the death of a primary school teacher who went missing for days only to be discovered decomposed in a bush many kilometers away.

Luka Kiplagat, 52, a teacher at Kaplelwo in Mogotio sub-county, left his home in Kabarbesi village on Saturday, October 29, telling his relatives that he was going to Nakuru for some errands and would return the next day.

He boarded a vehicle at Emining Shopping Centre, carrying a bag on his back. It was the last time his family heard from or saw him.

According to a family member, the father of five's phone went off on Sunday, a day after he left home.

The family suspected the phone had died and waited to see him on Monday, when he was supposed to return home.

On weekends, the teacher usually stayed at home. He taught at a school in a remote village more than 20 kilometers from his home.

According to Vincent Kiptoo, a relative, a colleague at the school later told the family that Mr Kiplagat had asked him to cover a class for him if he did not return by Monday.

The tutor was described by the tutor's family as a social person who had never committed a crime. They suspected he made a deal with some people that went sour.

Disappearance reported
After failing to locate him, his family reported his disappearance to the Emining police station on November 2 and a follow-up report to the Mogotio police station on November 5.

They learned at the Mogotio station about a man from the Tiaty constituency who had been arrested with an elephant tusk and an AK-47 rifle and was being held at the Kabarnet police station. His accomplice had been killed, but another had escaped and was still on the run.

To assist in the search for the missing teacher, a WhatsApp group of over 500 professionals and locals was formed.

Days later, relatives learned of a teacher's body discovered in the remote Nasur village in Tiaty East, on the borders of Baringo, Laikipia, and Samburu counties. The body was strewn with bullets.

"A World Vision official from our village who was distributing food in Tiaty overheard talk about the incident and assisted in identifying the body found in a thicket," a relative said.

Amaya Assistant Chief David Lomantile traveled to the area to assist in the identification of the body.

The family then arranged for the body to be transported to the morgue.

"The chief sent us photos of a man's decomposing body, and it appeared he had been murdered days before, and we recognized it as belonging to our relative because of the jacket he wore before he left, though his trousers and shoes had been removed," Mr Kiptoo explained.

Locals who saw the body reported seeing the teacher with two other locals on October 30 at a nearby shopping center, and that the tutor was their visitor, according to Mr Lomantile.

That is when they apprehended the first suspect, who is from Amaya village, while the second person, who is suspected of traveling with the deceased from Nakuru to the village on October 29, had gone missing," Mr Kiptoo explained.

Auta Tikalin Lokitulia, 41, was arrested on November 3 and is being held at the Kabarnet police station after a Kabarnet court granted detectives permission to hold him for 15 days while they investigate the killing.

Mauling of the body

Wild animals had mauled the body, leaving only a few bones."We have suffered a double tragedy of losing our relative and being unable to bury his remains," a tearful Mr Kiptoo said.Daniel Munguti, a Tiaty constituency detective, confirmed that only a few bones were discovered at the scene in the bush.

"The area is more than 30 kilometers from neighboring villages and borders Baringo, Laikipia, and Samburu counties, and we were forced to walk for several hours on foot because it was not accessible by vehicle," Mr Munguti explained.

"We have apprehended one suspect, who is said to have been [with the teacher], and we found him with an elephant tusk and a gun, but the other accomplice remains at large."

"We believe the trio struck a bad deal, which resulted in the [teacher's] death."

Detectives said the suspect in custody claims the teacher was shot dead by the missing accomplice after they disagreed on a deal.