Lucy Boke, the 22-year-old student of Kisii National Polytechnic who was killed on Thursday, November 9, had been in a relationship with Stephen Orengo, her suspected killer.
Speaking to the media on Friday, November 10, Mary Akinyi, Boke’s best friend said that the suspect was seen trailing her within the school’s vicinity in the evening on their way from college.
In the days preceding the murder, the suspect was away from school with reports indicating that he was undertaking his industrial attachment in his home country of Migori.
However, his unknown motives saw him travel back to Kisii for the encounter that would see him commit the heinous act on his former lover.
The friend narrated that Boke made it clear to her ex-boyfriend that she was no longer comfortable having a conversation with him.
“He was following him from behind, but we did not know what he was up to. Lucy told him she was not ready to talk since they had already parted ways,” the friend narrated.
However, the ex-boyfriend kept following her all the way to the rental room where Boke stayed.
The neighbors and friends asked the suspect to leave since Boke was not willing to talk at the moment.
However, their pleas fell on deaf ears.
Last moment before death of Kisii college student
Not even the heavy downpour at the time could compel the ex-boyfriend to leave Lucy Boke’s doorstep, an indication of the desperation in the love story.
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Eventually, the friend added, Boke opened the door on her way to the washrooms. Unknown to her, the suspect was waiting to pounce on her.
It was at that moment that the estranged boyfriend forced himself into Boke’s single room and locked the door from inside.
What followed was screams from the house occasioned by an apparent fighting which in turn alarmed the neighbors. However, the neighbors had little to do as the door was still locked.
Efforts to break the door proved futile and the neighbors had no other option other than calling for reinforcement from the police.
Also Read: Last Moments of College Student Killed by Ex-Boyfriend
The police found Boke’s body lying on the floor in a pool of blood. In addition, the police discovered a kitchen knife believed to have been used to commit the murder.
After surviving what witnesses described as a generous beating, Orengo was taken to the Kisii Teaching and Referral Hospital and later transferred to Kisii Police Station for processing ahead of his expected arraignment.
Police in Kisii also confirmed that preliminary reports indicated that her death had something to do with her relationship with the suspect.
Lucy Boke’s death now adds to a long list of murder cases in Kenyan institutions of higher learning.
In response to the recent case, Kisii County’s Officer in Charge of a Police Division (OCPD) urged young people to consider peaceful ways of resolving disputes emanating from relationships.
