Mother’s cry: New twist as KWS officers allegedly take Nakuru fisherman’s body away
In a fresh twist to the ongoing case of Nakuru fisherman Brian Odhiambo's disappearance, Elizabeth Auma, the distraught mother of the 31-year-old man, is now appealing for the return of her son's body after Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) officers allegedly took it.
Auma claims that after local fishermen discovered her son's body in a waterway on Monday, they were confronted by KWS officers who drew their guns and took the body without explanation.
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"The moment the boys said that is Brian, the officers cocked their guns and aimed at the boys," Auma said.
"The officers took the body and went with it. They didn't even bother with the boys. So I'm just asking that they return the body. We went to check at the morgue if there was any body that had been brought but there was none. Please give us the body so we can bury him in peace,” she said
Auma, who appeared exhausted from weeks of emotional turmoil, said she would accept her son's body even in a decomposed state to have closure.
"I'm tired and I just want to bury my son," she said, fighting back tears.
Odhiambo disappeared on January 18, 2025, when he was allegedly abducted by KWS officers near the Nakuru National Park fence.
Protests in Nakuru East
This prompted widespread protests in Nakuru East, where locals clashed with security forces, demanding his immediate release.
The demonstrations, which lasted five days, saw parts of the Lake Nakuru National Park set on fire.
Odhiambo, born on March 20, 1993, was the firstborn in a family of seven children.
After doing various jobs, including working at a flower farm in Naivasha and as a mason in Nairobi, he moved back to Nakuru and started fishing.
His partner, Okello, and their two young children have been devastated by his disappearance.
"Twenty days have passed since I last saw him. We don't know if we will ever see him again. Their youngest child, who recently started speaking, asks for his father every day. "I don't know what to say to him," Okello said.
Auma, who said she witnessed her son being taken away by KWS officers, described the painful moment.
"I pleaded with them, but they ignored me. I haven't slept in 20 days. Every sound at the door makes me hope it is him," Auma said.
Searching for answers
She has been searching for answers ever since his disappearance, visiting the courts in the hope of finding out what happened to Odhiambo.
Auma is now pleading that authorities return her son's body.
"He didn't steal or harm anyone. If he is a suspect, they should have charged him. They must bring him back," she said, her voice full of emotion.
The case has drawn attention to a larger issue of enforced disappearances, with the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) reporting a significant increase in such incidents.
In a statement issued on December 26, 2024, the KNCHR revealed that 82 cases of abductions or enforced disappearances had been recorded since June 2024, with many involving government critics.
For Auma, the wait for answers has been unbearable.
"If he is dead, we want his body," she said. "I cry a widow's tears. They are parents, don't they understand my pain? She asked.
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