A tragic turn of events has shaken Chuka University after the body of 20-year-old student Edinah Kemunto was discovered in a rooftop water tank on April 2, days after she was reported missing. The prime suspect, Philip Eric Mutinda, a fellow first-year student studying Electrical Engineering, is now in custody following his surrender to authorities.
According to police reports, Mutinda admitted to visiting Kemunto in her hostel room on March 30, knowing she would be alone. During the visit, he allegedly made unwelcome advances, which Kemunto rejected. An argument reportedly broke out, leading to a physical altercation. Mutinda claims he pushed her against a wall, causing her to hit her head and collapse. He told investigators he realized moments later that she had died.
In a state of panic, Mutinda allegedly placed her body in a suitcase and initially hid it in his own room. The following day, he moved the suitcase to the rooftop of another hostel block and concealed the body in a water tank. The crime came to light after students and staff reported a foul odor coming from Block E. Authorities discovered Kemunto’s body and transferred it to the mortuary, pending a post-mortem examination.
Mutinda fled the university on March 31 and remained in hiding until April 3, when he turned himself in at Sultan Hamud Police Station in Makueni County. Investigators believe he initially escaped to his rural home before deciding to surrender.
Kemunto, a student of Mass Communication and Computer Science, had last contacted her mother, Triza Kwamboka, on the same day she went missing. Concerned by the silence, her mother reported her disappearance to the university and police. She had also previously raised concerns about her daughter being harassed by a fellow student, though it remains unclear whether this was connected to the incident.
Witnesses reported seeing Mutinda dragging a suitcase from Kemunto’s room to his own block on the day she vanished. His roommate also noticed the suitcase briefly appeared in their room before disappearing again the next day. Investigators later traced Kemunto’s phone signal within the university compound before it was switched off near Ongata Rongai, fueling suspicions of an attempted cover-up.
Mutinda is expected to appear in court today, April 7, as detectives seek to detain him further to complete forensic analysis and interview additional witnesses. A post-mortem will also be conducted to establish the exact cause of death.
