17-Year-Old Murder Suspect Held After Phone Tracking Links Him to Eight-Month-Old Case

A 17-year-old murder suspect has been arraigned at the Makadara Law Courts after a forensic breakthrough led homicide detectives to a mobile phone belonging to a man who was killed nearly eight months ago.

The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) Homicide Bureau filed a miscellaneous application seeking orders to detain Brian Mwendia Kinyua for 21 days at Kasarani Police Station as investigations into the murder of Derick Tom Omanga continue.

Court documents filed by investigating officer PC Josiah Mokenye state that Omanga’s body was found at around 2am on December 24, 2025, near the Roysambu flyover along Thika Road. His mobile phone and laptop were missing.

After months of digital tracking, detectives traced Omanga’s phone to Kangeta in Igembe Central, Meru County, where Kinyua was arrested on Tuesday, August 18.

During questioning, Kinyua denied killing Omanga, telling detectives that he had bought the phone from a third party through an M-Pesa transaction. He reportedly expressed willingness to help police identify and trace the seller.

Investigators have also uncovered forensic evidence that could shed more light on Omanga’s final moments.

An autopsy conducted by Dr Simon Omuok on December 24, 2025, established that Omanga died from multiple organ injuries caused by high-impact blunt-force trauma.

However, toxicology tests by the Government Chemist detected ethanol and a highly toxic industrial solvent in his system, raising suspicion that Omanga may have been drugged before he was physically assaulted.

CCTV footage obtained by the DCI shows Omanga at Wines and Tails Club along Ngong Road on the night of December 23, 2025. He was reportedly in the company of his girlfriend and an unidentified man.

At about 11pm, Omanga collected his laptop and phone from the club counter, where they had been left for safekeeping. The three later boarded an Uber taxi heading to another club along Thika Road, shortly before Omanga was killed and his body dumped along the highway.

State prosecutors from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) told the court that the 21-day detention is necessary to verify Kinyua’s age, analyse M-Pesa transaction records to identify the person who sold him the phone and trace other suspected accomplices.

The prosecution argued that releasing the suspect at this stage could compromise the ongoing murder investigation.