Two separate incidents in Migori and Taita Taveta counties have left residents grappling with grief after a 30-year-old shepherd drowned while fetching water and a 76-year-old man was found brutally murdered.
In Migori County, tragedy struck near Kwirabo village in Igena Sub-location, Kuria West, after a routine trip to the Ororwi River ended in the death of a young shepherd.
The deceased, identified as Asheri Mwita, reportedly drowned on Friday, August 28, 2026, while fetching water from the river.
According to police, Mwita had travelled to the river on a red Bajaj motorcycle and was drawing water when he is suspected to have accidentally slipped and fallen into the water.
What happened next remains unclear.
When police officers arrived at the scene following reports of the drowning, they found the motorcycle and several empty 20-litre jerrycans near the riverbank. One of the containers was reportedly still floating on the water, providing a grim indication of what may have happened moments earlier.
Officers and other responders subsequently recovered Mwita’s body from the river.
A preliminary examination reportedly found no visible injuries on the body, although the exact circumstances and cause of death will be established through a postmortem examination.
The body was taken to the Kehancha Subcounty Hospital mortuary, where it will be preserved pending the postmortem.
Police have since launched investigations to establish how Mwita ended up in the river and whether his death was purely accidental.
Elderly Man Found Murdered in Voi
Meanwhile, residents of Mukamenyi village in Buguta Sub-location, Voi, Taita Taveta County, were confronted with a disturbing discovery after the body of a 76-year-old man was found with severe injuries.
The deceased, identified as Ngoa Ndoro Ngoa, was discovered on Friday night, August 28, under circumstances that have raised questions among residents.
Police officers who responded to the scene reportedly found the elderly man with deep cuts to his head and neck, suggesting that he had suffered a violent attack.
The circumstances leading to the killing remained unclear, and police had not established the motive behind the attack.
Officers secured and documented the scene as detectives began piecing together the events surrounding the elderly man’s final moments.
No suspect had been identified or arrested at the time of the initial investigations, with police expected to pursue leads from the area and question individuals who may have information about the incident.
Ngoa’s body was later moved to the Moi Referral Hospital mortuary in Voi, where it will remain pending a postmortem examination.
The examination is expected to provide investigators with additional information about the nature of the injuries and help establish the circumstances surrounding his death.
The two incidents have left the respective communities mourning while police continue with investigations.
In Migori, detectives are working to establish how a routine water-fetching trip ended in tragedy, while in Voi, investigators face the more troubling task of uncovering who attacked the elderly man and why.
Authorities have urged anyone with information that could assist in either investigation to come forward as detectives continue following leads.
For now, the families of Mwita and Ngoa are left waiting for answers as investigators work to unravel the circumstances surrounding the two separate tragedies.
