Grief gripped Kambi Miwa village near Turbo trading centre in Uasin Gishu County after the body of a former traffic police officer was retrieved from the raging waters of Sosiani River on Wednesday morning.
According to the deceased’s family members, the late William Namasaka, who hailed from Kilimani village in the neighbouring Likuyani sub county, was last seen on Sunday evening with friends and patrons in a local pub at Turbo market.
“My brother left home on Sunday morning to an undisclosed destination. He was spotted in one of the local pubs at Turbo market later in the day but did not show up at home,” explained Mr. Tom Namasaka, the deceased’s brother.
He said the family reported William’s disappearance at Turbo police station on Monday before mounting a frantic search.
Mr. Namasaka noted that a section of Turbo Railway Bridge users, who cross the river, claimed to have overheard a man’s voice underneath the bridge calling for help on Sunday at about 8 pm.
“In fact one of the bridge users alleged to have connected the caller’s voice with the deceased,” said Namasaka adding that the claims provided important leads towards the deceased’s whereabouts.
Most of the passersby failed to accord the caller serious attention,“ because they thought him a mere drunk,” he added.
The body eventually floated and was retrieved from the river by the residents with the help of local divers on Wednesday morning before it was taken to Kimbilio Funeral Home in Kipkarren.
Confirming the incident, Tapsagoi location chief Mr. Jonathan Masika Mutoro appealed for calmness from the family and the public, saying the area security agencies had instituted investigations in order to determine the exact cause of the former traffic officer’s death.
“Police have launched investigation into the incident to establish whether the death was accidental, suicidal or whether he was thrown in the river by supposed assailants,” said Masika
Individuals close to the deceased claimed he had been axed from public service due to undisclosed reasons.
However, family members did not comment on the same.