Police in Gatundu North Subcounty, Kiambu county, are investigating a suspected murder and serious assault incident linked to a violent confrontation involving a Kenya Defence Forces soldier and a prison officer at Mariani Shopping Centre.

According to police, the incident began on June 5, 2026, when a soldier and a prison officer were drinking at a bar in Mariani.

The two reportedly became involved in a heated argument that escalated into a physical confrontation.

Investigators say the soldier allegedly followed the warden as he headed home and assaulted him with a blunt object, inflicting head injuries.

The victim’s screams attracted neighbours who came to his rescue. The assault was subsequently reported at Kanjeria Police Station, police said on Sunday.

Two other people were assaulted in the process. A man later reported at Matara Police Post that his brother, John Waweru Njehia, had been found unconscious near the same bar with severe head and facial injuries.

Family members rushed him to a private clinic in Mariani before he was referred to Gatundu South Level 5 Hospital for specialised treatment.

Njehia later succumbed to his injuries on June 6 while undergoing treatment at the hospital.

Police also confirmed that a third victim remains unconscious as investigations continue.

Police visited and documented the scene, and the body of Njehia was preserved at the Gatundu South Level 5 Hospital mortuary pending a post-mortem examination.

Authorities have launched a manhunt for the military officer, who is the prime suspect in the incident. Investigations are ongoing to establish the circumstances surrounding the assault and determine whether the three victims were attacked during the same sequence of events. 

Meanwhile, a 53-year-old man was brutally killed and his house set ablaze by unknown assailants in Migori County in an attack police believe may be linked to a long-standing family land dispute.

The incident occurred in Uriri Subcounty.

According to police, the attack was witnessed by the deceased’s brother, who said he saw the house engulfed in flames and a group of unknown people within the vicinity.

The suspects fled before he could identify them. When he rushed to the burning house to check on his brother, identified as Jared Odero, 53, he found him lying lifeless inside the partially burnt structure.

The body had visible deep cut wounds on the back, neck and hands, indicating he may have been attacked with sharp weapons before the house was set on fire.

The witness managed to pull the body from the burning house. During the attack, the deceased’s wife was also assaulted by the suspects and sustained an injury to her left toe.

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She was taken to Othoro Dispensary, where she received treatment and was later discharged in stable condition.

Police officers visited the scene and processed it as investigations commenced.

The body was moved to Migori Level IV Hospital mortuary, awaiting a post-mortem examination.

Preliminary investigations indicate the murder and arson attack may have been motivated by a long-standing land dispute within the extended family, although detectives say inquiries are ongoing to establish the identities of the attackers and the exact circumstances surrounding the killing.