Malindi village elder killed over alleged illicit affair
Coast
By
Marion Kithi
| Jul 20, 2026
Directorate of Criminal Investigation (DCI) officers in Malindi have launched investigations into the murder of a 65-year-old village elder in Mkondoni sub-location, Kilifi County.
Amos Luganje's body was discovered near a thicket, lying in a pool of blood, with a bow and a blood-stained arrow found beside him. He had left home pushing a wheelbarrow to his farm at around 11 am before he met his death.
According to a police report, the deceased was attacked by an unknown person on his way to his farm about a kilometre from his home on suspicion that he was having an affair with a married woman.
The arrow entered through the back and penetrated the chest, remaining lodged in the deceased’s body.
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The deceased had served as the village elder for the past 13 years.
Investigating officers discovered that he was allegedly in an extramarital affair with a married woman.
The matter had reportedly been resolved amicably through the local administration, although it resulted in the separation of Luganje and his wife, who returned to her parents' home.
The body was removed to Malindi sub-county hospital mortuary, awaiting a post-mortem examination.
The suspects remain at large as investigations continue.
Meanwhile, a suspect in the murder of a woman whose head was severed last week in Naivasha was lynched by a mob.
The man, said to be a motorcycle operator, was nabbed in Kinungi Centre, where the incident occurred and beaten to death even as the search for the missing head and arms of the victim continued.
Last week, the suspect lured the 42-year-old ex-lover and killed her by chopping off her head and hands before taking them to an unknown place.