Detectives probing the murder of a teacher by unknown assailants after withdrawing Sh285,000 from a bank in Mumias town have narrowed their investigations to two bank tellers.
The Standard has established that the two bank employees who served the slain Roseylda Akinyi are persons of interest, even as they pursue two other suspects who were captured through the bank’s CCTV cameras.
This comes as it emerged that the deceased was stabbed with a knife and not shot by a gun as earlier reported by authorities.
Last week, Akinyi was waylaid by a
group of thugs in a saloon car
, moments after she had withdrawn money from the bank.
She was attacked barely a kilometre from the bank.
According to Western Regional Criminal Investigation Officer, Njeru Nthiga, the detectives are pursuing two men who were seen engaging a bank teller and a guard suspiciously.
“So far, so good, we are not doing badly. We have two suspects who were in the bank and they were seen engaging a bank teller at the loan section and a bank security guard,” said Nthiga.
He added, “She was not killed by a gun but rather the killer used a sharp and long knife which went through the left side of the chest, cut the right aorta of the heart and came out through the right side of the ribs before it was removed and that is why there were small wounds at the entry and exit different from the effects of a gun.”
He said preliminary investigations reveal that one of the suspects had asked for a loan that was not in existence while another engaged a guard alleging that some money had been sent to the wrong number and he needed help in a time game as they waited for the deceased to make a withdrawal.
According to Nthiga, the detectives have so far obtained CCTV footage from the bank, which clearly shows the suspects stalking the deceased while pretending to be on the phone when in the queue.
“The suspects are seen suspiciously looking at the deceased, and we suspect their conduct and if they are not the killers or the scouts for killers, they should show or direct us to the killers,” said Nthiga.
He said that police have every reason to believe the two tellers, a bank security guard and the boda boda operator who was carrying the deceased, have some crucial information in unearthing the murder.
“We have a lot of options we are exploring because when you make a bulk withdrawal, bank tellers can set you up, or a bank guard or maybe the suspects might see the kind of withdrawal and decide to trail you,” he said.
According to the detective
, although the boda boda operator is said to be a relative of the late, he will be questioned to establish whether he was in any way an informer to one of the suspects.
“We have already obtained the mobile phone of the deceased, which is in our possession for further analysis. It is a difficult process, but we have to do it,” said Nthiga.
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The detective boss said the incident had nothing to do with the loss of three guns, including two pistols and an AK-47, in unclear circumstances from different police stations across the region.
By Bernard Lusigi