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On January 30, we reported that 40-year-old Kevin Adam Kinyanjui Kangethe, wanted in connection with killing 31-year-old Margaret Mbitu of Whitman, Massachusetts, was apprehended at a nightclub by Kenyan authorities.
Kangethe is suspected of stabbing Mbitu to death sometime between October 30 and November 4, 2023. then dumping her body in a garage at Logan Airport.
Massachusetts District Attorney Kevin Hayden said that his office was informed by federal officials that Kangethe escaped from police custody in Kenya. “It is our hope that Kenyan law enforcement will do their utmost to recapture Kangethe so that we can continue seeking justice for Margaret Mbitu and her family,” Hayden said.
Kangethe escaped the prison prison despite there being four officers on duty. The opportunity to escape was made possible when Kangethe was removed from his cell and placed in an office to meet with his attorney John Maina Ndegwa who had scheduled the meeting.
Nairobi Police Chief John Maina Ndegwa called Kengethe’s escape “embarrassing.” All four of the officers who were on duty have been arrested.
In a press conference, Mbitu’s family was livid at Kengethe’s escape. Mbitu’s cousin Joel Muhoro visibly angry with officials, said “I don’t have no words. They had him. They told us they had him and they let him walk out. So who can we trust?”
On Wednesday, February 14th, Authorities in Kenya said the man suspected of murder in Massachusetts was rearrested after he escaped local authorities a week earlier while awaiting extradition. They did not elaborate on the details of the arrest.
When news broke last week that Kangethe escaped prison, the family of Margaret Mbitu was devastated and many were exposing the Kenyan Police Department as being heavily corrupt.
Kangethe is expected to get sent back to the United States, and we will follow up with details as new information is released.
