A Thika-based businessman who was reported missing over two months ago resurfaced on Sunday, December 6, saying his alleged abductors set him free on Saturday.
Julius Gitau, popularly known as Gitau wa Mali, told detectives that gun-totting men abducted him near Kenya Revenue Authority officers in Thika on September 21 at around 10 am while on his way to a local gym.
“Accompanied by my third wife, who is a police officer in Thika, I reported to my shop in the heart of the town and delivered a parcel to my messenger at around 7 am,” he said.
He then left for the gym but was abducted and lost consciousness after being forced to have a soda.
Gitau, who owns two general merchandise shops in Thika, said when he regained consciousness, he found himself in a big building with a hall.
“I was made to wash clothes and utensils for the tenants. Once in a while, I was ordered to clean the compound,” Gitau’s statement to the police says.
The businessman said he could not identify the owners of the building or describe its appearance and location “because I was restricted to the servant quarters”.
The motive of his abduction remained unclear, with his family saying no one demanded ransom.
Gitau said he does not understand why anyone would want to keep him as a domestic worker for such a long time(11 weeks).
The trader said when he was released, his abductors handed him over to two heavily built men on Saturday around 4 am. Gitau said he later found out that he was being held captive in Kamwangi town in Gatundu North constituency.
“We walked for hours before entering a forest. The men then told me to continue walking and never look back. I later found myself on a dusty road. I was lucky because a boda boda appeared almost immediately,” he said.
Gitau said the boda boda operator gave him a mobile phone to call his family and some money to board a matatu to his third wife’s house.
However, Murang’a police officers handling the matter told Nation that Gitau’s story is not believable. They said his account of what transpired would be reviewed “with all the expertise and technology available”.
