Chirchir’s body was discovered in Machakos Level V Hospital.
As investigations into the mysterious death of Evans Chirchir, an official working with the Ministry of Treasury, are expected to commence, a section of friends who were scheduled to meet the deceased have now found themselves as points of interest.
Felix Kaeto, a lawyer to the family, who spoke during a press briefing on Wednesday, September 4, revealed that the friends wanted to meet the deceased in Machakos. However, it was after the meeting that they learnt of Chirchir’s disappearance.
Chirchir’s body was discovered in Machakos Level V Hospital, with his family reporting that the deceased who died on Friday, August 31, 2024, might have met his death because of the nature of his work at the National Treasury.
“Before he died, there were some friends who summoned him and told him that they wanted to have a meeting with him at Machakos. After that meeting, Evans Chirchir disappeared,” Kaeto disclosed.
Philip Langat together with Felix Kaeto, the lawyers representing the family of Evans Chirchir addressed the media at Milimani Law Courts on September 4, 2024. /PHOTO
The lawyer, who was in the company of his colleague, Philip Langat, had however noted that they were still gathering information from close friends of the deceased who had probably interacted with him before his death to aid in uncovering the circumstances under which he died.
The lawyers had moved to court under habeas corpus for Chirchir to be produced in court after his disappearance and it was then that the family informed them of the sudden turn of events that the body had been found in a mortuary.Â
Reports indicated that the late Chirchir was working on a Ksh286 million tender at the Treasury during the period that he disappeared, and had expressed fears for his life on the same.
“The manner in which he was killed by the criminals is questionable and raises eyebrows. It cannot be a coincidence that it is not related to tender and work issues.,” Kaeto stated, adding “The issues of tender can be related to the death and as such, we do not want to speculate on the circumstances but to demand justice.”
According to the lawyers, Chirchir had faced the life threats which raised questions as to whether the death could be linked to issues surrounding tendering processes.
He was even said to have informed the brother about the unease he was experiencing with the process and even informed him that his life was in danger.
“What we are getting is that there was a tender of Ksh286 million and Chirchir also raised this issue and informed his brother that his life was in danger mainly because of the tendering process,” Kaeto revealed.
“Were the issues surrounding the tendering process related to the death of Evans Chirchir? Those are the issues that we want the DCI to unravel.’’
The family, through the lawyers, demanded that the Inspector General of Police and the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) get to the bottom of who…or what killed their son.
“We want to inform the press and the entire nation that this is an issue that needs to be thoroughly investigated with speed,’’ Langat told the media, affirming “It is not just like any murder, it is a murder that is linked mainly with the procurement processes. Therefore, the investigations must move with speed.”
Dr Daniel Katua, the medical superintendent at Machakos Level Five Hospital, told journalists that the deceased was brought to the facility on August 31, 2024, at 9:20 p.m., adding that officers from Kyumbi Police Station positively identified the body based on information from the mortuary’s attendants.
The doctor revealed that the family had obtained permission from Kyumbi police station to transfer the body to a place of their choice, presumably a private mortuary, but declined to reveal further details about the body, citing privacy reasons, advising reporters to contact the deceased’s family for additional details.
He however mentioned that the deceased’s relatives had initially gone to retrieve the body from the mortuary for transfer but were instructed to obtain permission from Kyumbi Police Station first.
“A post-mortem examination was scheduled to be conducted on the body at this facility today. The family, however, instead placed a request for them to have it transferred. When they came here, we told them to come with the police,” Dr. Katua said.
After obtaining the required police documentation, the family successfully collected and transferred the body to Machakos Funeral Home.
The postmortem is scheduled for Thursday, September 5 which will ascertain what might have caused the death of Chirchir.