Two people have been arrested, and one other is being sought to face murder charges for the brutal killing of Willis Ayieko, a Human Resource Manager at Wells Fargo—the American multinational diversified financial services holding company known for its courier, transport, and logistics work in Kenya.
Police officers said they expected to arrest the now would-be third suspect, a man, during a traffic stop on the outskirts of Siaya Town on Wednesday morning.
Instead, when the officers attempted to take him into custody, he pulled out a gun and started shooting at them, leading to an exchange of fire before he escaped.
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According to officers assigned to a tactical unit investigating the murder, they had no choice but to defend themselves, discharging their firearms after the suspect ignored repeated calls for restraint and surrender.
Investigators reported finding bloodstains at the scene, and the man, now considered a fugitive, may have been hit in the face, chest, arm, or legs during the shootout.
A gun initially believed to belong to the suspect was also recovered at the crime scene; however, a review of purchasing and licensing records revealed that it belonged to the murdered Wells Fargo HR manager, whose body was found handcuffed and brutalized on October 23 in underbrush near a small stream in Nyamninia, Siaya County, three days after he went missing.
This evidence places the fugitive as a central suspect in Ayieko’s murder, and the police arrested his girlfriend, who was with him during the shootout, as the second suspect to assist in investigations.
The first suspect, identified as Victor Ouma Okoth, was located and arrested yesterday while in his hideout in Nairobi’s Dandora Phase IV, where he had rented a house with proceeds from the crime, according to authorities.
“The suspect was placed at the scene of the crime through forensic DNA analysis, in the forensic-led investigation being conducted by a joint team of DCI’s Homicide, CRIB, and Operations detectives.”
After an autopsy on Ayieko’s body, Chief Government Pathologist Dr Johansen Oduor concluded that Ayieko died from traumatic brain injury and other blunt force trauma, which damaged underlying tissues and outer structures. “There was bleeding to the brain. Additionally, there were bruises on the wrists from cuffs found on him,” Dr Oduor stated. “Tissue was also missing from his mouth, ear, and cheek.”
So far, authorities have not detailed any motive for the murder, though it is suspected to be linked to a high-profile heist involving over Ksh94 million belonging to Quickmart Supermarket, allegedly stolen by Wells Fargo’s armoured truck personnel while transporting it to a Family Bank branch in the city sometime late last year.
Investigators are exploring the possibility of an inside job, and several employees, including drivers, fleet supervisors, and crew commanders, have been arrested as part of ongoing investigations.
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