Police Looking For Main Suspect In Murder Of Radio Presenter Lilian Achieng Aluko

Police in Kahawa West, Kiambu County, are hunting for George Mutegi, the main suspect in the murder of Lilian Achieng Aluko, a journalist in Kasarani, Nairobi County, in another case of femicide that raised more fears regarding the safety of women across the country.

The 33-year-old who was a presenter at local radio station Radio 44, was killed on Friday, November 1, and her boyfriend, Mutegi, has been identified as the main suspect.

Aluko was suspected of having been brutally murdered by her boyfriend on Friday who later vanished, with police launching a manhunt for Mutegi. She was found dead at her boyfriend’s house with injuries on her face and a stab wound in the back.

Aluko had informed her family on Thursday she would be spending the night at her boyfriend’s place, which would be the last time they saw her alive.

“She left at around 11 am and told me she went to her friend. She did not return. On Friday, minutes to 9, I received a call from an unknown number (informing her of her demise),” Lilian’s mother, Jane Akinyi Aluko, recalled.

A police report had indicated that the two had returned home after visiting a local entertainment joint. Soon after, neighbours reported hearing sounds of violent altercations but they were unable to intervene as the door was locked and the stereo volume was loud.

A knife believed to be the murder weapon used in the gruesome act was recovered at the scene. The family called on the police to arrest the suspect, who remains at large.

Lilian is described by her friends as bubbly and full of life. Her sister mourned her sudden demise saying, “I am heartbroken and devastated because her light has been taken too soon. What we just wish is justice for her.”

Shadrack Aluko, the deceased’s brother, expressed the family’s distress upon receiving the news about Lilian’s death. “When we got the fateful call, it was distressing; it is not something I would wish on anyone,” he said.

Friends mourned Lilian as a productive and inspiring person whose future has been cut short. She was a former presenter at Radio 44. “I’m heartbroken and devastated because her light has been taken too soon. What we just wish is just for her,” her sister, Diane Aluko said.

Another friend added “We have lost a very good girl in the hands of a person she really loved."

The police report went on to reveal that Lilian’s body was found with injuries to her head and a knife wound on her right ear. Furthermore, the suspect switched off his phone and went into hiding after committing the crime.

Lilian’s body was moved to the Kenyatta Memorial Funeral Home for storage as investigations into the incident continue. This comes as the femicide menace continues to escalate across the country, coming on the back of statistics by the National Police Service (NPS) Deputy Inspector General (IG) of Police Eliud Langat's statement revealing that at least 97 women have been killed in the past three months.

In response, President William Ruto, for the second time, sounded a warning to those behind the heinous acts and told investigating agencies to bring the perpetrators behind the killings to book.

While speaking at Divine Africa Church on Sunday, November 3, the Head of State reaffirmed the government’s commitment to dealing with violence against women stating that both criminal and moral issues surrounding these crimes will be addressed 

''Our youth, especially the ladies, if we could be loving them, instead of showing them love now we have changed it to killings, how can it be that our girls, the women of Kenya that we expect to love, that now they are dying in the hands of men?,’’ Ruto questioned.