Identity Of Kenyan Socialite Burnt To Death Alongside Nigerian Boyfriend
Police revealed that they were last seen heading home before their vehicle was found abandoned on Monday, June 26.
Marvin Chege 
Police officers from Kasarani police station investigating the heinous killing of a Nigerian man and his Kenyan girlfriend on Monday, July 3 identified the couple whose bodies were badly burnt in the Kamulu area in Ruai, Nairobi.
Preliminary reports identified the two as Kenyan socialite Rachael Kanini "Kaniss" and her Nigerian lover Olujobi Gbenga alias Omodollar.
Reports that emerged on Saturday, July 1 revealed that the couple was accosted by unidentified individuals who assaulted and pulled them out of their vehicle minutes before arriving at their home along Thome estate at around 11:00 pm.
Police revealed that they were last seen heading home before their vehicle was found abandoned on Monday, June 26. Further, the bodies were found in a charred state near the woman's home.
DCI detectives at a crime scene. /FILE
Officers who arrived at the crime scene on time assessed the scene before ferrying the bodies to the city mortuary as investigations commenced.
Further reports indicated that Gbenga may have been tricked by his killers to call his girlfriend and pretend that he was involved in an accident along Kiambu Road and needed help, only to meet his death alongside Kanini despite the macabre killing of the couple remaining a mystery.
Kanini, who turned 31 a few months ago and lived with Gbenga on Ridgeways Kiambu Road, received a call from her boyfriend informing her that he had been involved in the accident.
Before she arrived, Gbenga was said to have called Kanini again to inform her that he had been arrested by people claiming to be police officers and that he needed her to accompany him to a police station to record a statement, but Gbenga did not reveal which police station the alleged law enforcement officers claimed to be from.
Kanini's closest friends in a WhatsApp group formed ahead of her burial in Tala, Machakos alleged that the socialite called them and asked them to pray for her boyfriend after he called them to say he was in distress before he left the house.
One of them alleged that Kanini, who was about to get married, expressed worry regarding the accident and arrest of Gbenga and might have innocently lured herself into a death trap.
She noted that her last moments with Kanini came a few weeks back when she reached out to her requesting her company during the World Rally Championship (WRC) Safari Rally that took place between June 22-25.
“She sounded excited. I told her I was feeling exhausted and the last conversation was when she contacted me on the day she disappeared to tell me that she was worried that her husband had called to inform her that he had been involved in an accident and was on his way to the scene.
"She said, pray for my husband, he has been involved in an accident. A few minutes later, she called to say he had been arrested by people claiming to be police officers,'' she told Nation.Africa.
The couple's disappearance was reported at Kasarani Police Station Nairobi under OB 2/26/06/2023 by a relative after close friends told their circles what Kanini had told them and eventually failed to return home.
Family and close friends as well as detectives familiar with the incident at Kasarani Police Station and Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) Headquarters hinted that the couple's killers were probably well known to them given the manner in which they were killed.
At the scene where the bodies were found in Ruai, near Kanini's rural home and at City Mortuary in Nairobi, where the bodies of the two are being kept ahead of their post-mortem on Tuesday, July 4, Kanini was reportedly lured thinking she was going to find out what had happened to her boyfriend and was bundled into his car and her own car, which she had driven to the scene, before being dumped in Thome area, which is accessible from Muthaiga North Road, which connects both Kiambu Road and Thika road.
The two, according to sources at City Mortuary, were allegedly tied from behind, tortured and then beaten with a blunt object before being burnt to death, with Gbenga's car set on fire to mask evidence linking the killers to him.
“It seems that they were killed by people who knew them very well and their killers made sure that no trace was left behind to link them to the killing. They were brought here by police officers from Ruai and were detained unknown until recently when their families came here and identified them after many hours,'' revealed a mortuary attendant.
Nairobi police commander Adamson Bungei said they are investigating to establish who was behind the murder and the motive.
The discovery left members of the community in shock as well as an outpouring of grief and condolences from friends, family, and fans online ahead of the socialite's burial. Locals further claimed that the couple had been dating for 10 years.
Both bodies were naked at the time of discovery and their legs and hands were tied with shoelaces, according to police and witnesses.
Murdered Kenyan socialite Rachael Kanini, alias 'Kaniss'. /NAIROBI GOSSIP CLUB
According to police, the body of the Nigerian had visible injuries on the head, stomach and thighs, while the female body had no visible injuries but the lower part of the waist was missing. The kidnappers were believed to have employed a sophisticated and well-coordinated operation, which ensured they left no traces behind.
What astounded the detectives was that the two lovers were found holding each other at their death. Police officers are uncovering all possible leads to locate the suspects behind the gruesome murder of the couple and unearth the motive, which in most such cases, has either been linked to a love triangle, a business deal gone sour or a business rivalry.
![Ngina Kenyatta Resurfaces In Nairobi CBD Without Bodyguards [PHOTOS & VIDEO]](https://viraltea.co.ke/uploads/images/2023/04/image_380x226_644d0882ba51c.jpg){kind=small}
