Manhunt launched for missing Chiromo hospital staffer linked to Susan Njoki's death
The hospital staffer who allegedly vanished two days after Njoki’s body was discovered inside the facility on July 15.
A female suspect is on police radar in connection with the murder of Toto Touch CEO Susan Njoki, who was strangled to death while admitted at Chiromo Hospital Group’s Braeside branch.
Detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) Dagoretti have launched a manhunt for the hospital staffer who allegedly vanished two days after Njoki’s body was discovered inside the facility on July 15.
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DCI officers returned to the facility on Wednesday to question staff members who were on duty on the day Njoki died. The missing staffer is believed to be a key person of interest, with investigators linking her disappearance to the events surrounding the killing.
Police spent over eight hours at the hospital, interrogating staff ranging from those who picked Njoki from her Kileleshwa residence, to medical personnel who interacted with her during her stay, and others who were present during the final hours before she was found dead in a shared hospital room.
The detectives also reviewed and retrieved CCTV footage from the facility. The footage is said to have captured Njoki’s admission to the hospital on July 14, and her movements up to the point she was allegedly strangled.
An autopsy conducted on Tuesday, July 22, at Montezuma Monalisa Funeral Home confirmed that Njoki, a nurse and founder of the mental health organisation Toto Touch, died from manual strangulation. The examination was carried out by six pathologists representing the family, Chiromo Hospital Group, and the government.
“Susan died because of what we call manual strangulation. If I put it in normal language, it means kunyongwa kwa shingo,” family pathologist Dr P.M. Maturi said.
Government pathologist Dr J.N. Ndungu added, “There are features of compression to the neck, and those features are in keeping with manual strangulation. There are also signs of lack of oxygen in the blood as a result of neck compression.”
The autopsy established that Njoki died approximately four hours after her last meal. She had been taken to Chiromo Hospital Group’s Braeside branch allegedly without her consent. Prior to her admission, Njoki had taken to social media claiming her husband, Alloise Ngure, had sent four individuals to forcibly inject and admit her to a mental facility.
Her brother, Ephantus Kamengere, confirmed the family’s suspicions.
“We are almost satisfied because the intention of collecting her, forcing her to go to the hospital against her will, was there. The instructions were given by the husband,” he said.
“As a family, we may decide to do toxicology and other investigations.”
Njoki’s sister, Priscillah Wanjiru, appealed for justice, saying, “As Kamengere family, tunaweza shukuru sana tukaweza pata justice. Mtusaidie kwa sababu tumelose our loving sister.”
The family has insisted they will not proceed with burial plans until they secure the right to do so.
“We cannot lose our sister that way and also lose the right to bury. This is an instruction to Montezuma that nobody has a right to take that body before we decide,” Kamengere said.
Police have so far questioned several people in connection with the case, including Njoki’s husband, Alloise Ngure, and her psychiatrist, Dr Onyancha. Both were arrested last week and later released on police cash bail after recording statements.
Meanwhile, Chiromo Hospital Group mourned Njoki’s death, describing the incident as a moment of reckoning for the facility and for mental healthcare in the country.
“First, I extend my deepest condolences to her family and to everyone grieving this loss. A brilliant young woman known to me personally died in our care. That demands more than sorrow. It demands truth,” the hospital Chairman Frank Njenga said in a statement on Wednesday.
“Truth is paramount to all other concerns in this case. We care for the vulnerable, and now we must prove it when it’s hardest to do so.”
Njenga noted that the hospital is conducting an internal review of its operations and protocols to prevent a similar occurrence in future.
“We are actively engaged in self-introspection and review of our operational and procedural mandates. Our commitment is and has always been to be better and to do better for all our stakeholders and those in our care,” he said.
He described Njoki as a passionate advocate for mental health whose legacy must be honoured.
“Dr Toto’s voice of advocacy and care for those with mental health deserves to be heard, even now. The best way we honour her is by ensuring that the truth surrounding the circumstances of her death is established in an open and transparent manner,” Njenga said.
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