Rogue Del Monte Guards on the Spotlight Over Multiple Murders in the vast Multi-National Fruit Processing Land in Kiambu County.
Del Monte, a multinational fruit processing company operating in Kenya is in the spotlight for the murder of tens of Kenyans over the years for allegedly trespassing on their vast piece of land and stealing pineapples.
The multi-national company came under public criticism on Monday 25th 2023 following reports that four Kenyans had gone missing in the vicinity of its land.
Following their disappearance, locals organized a search team which retrieved the remains of the missing persons in River Thika which canvasses through the Pineapple farm.
Unconfirmed reports indicate that Del Monte guards had tortured the four before their lifeless bodies were dumped in the river.
The four are said to have left their homes on December 18 in pursuit of unskilled labour at an adjacent quarry. Whilst working at the quarry, they reportedly sneaked into the pineapple plantation and harvested pineapples for their consumption. Unfortunately, they were busted by guards manning the plantation, and tortured before their lifeless bodies were dumped in River Thika.
This is not the first time, the multinational company has been in the spotlight for the murder of Kenyans who had allegedly trespassed on the plantation begging the question whether the country’s criminal justice system only exists for the haves.
Patrick Mutuku Death in the Hands of Del Monte Guards.
On November 13th 2023, Peter Mutuku Mutisya sneaked into Del Monte land to steal pineapples alongside his friends. His body was later found floating on a dam inside the pineapple plantation.
Friends who had accompanied Peter Mutuku to the farm for a heist told reporters that the deceased had been busted by guards while fleeing. He was reportedly subjected to torture before being dumped in a dam.
In an unprecedented turn of events, the autopsy report indicated that Peter Mutuku Mutisya died as a result of drowning contrary to the allegations that he was tortured to death before being dumped in the dam.
The autopsy report contradicted Mutuku’s father’s claim that his son’s body had bruises on the head and other parts of the body. It also contradicted the heist’s partner’s claim that they had him being tortured as a signal to a possible murder cover-up.
Unsatisfied by the autopsy results, The Bureau of Investigative Journalism and the Guardian sent photos of the deceased to a doctor who disputed the chances of Patrick Mutuku Mutisya drowning.
The file on Mutuku’s murder is still open at the Kenya National Human Rights Commission.
The Gruesome Murder of Stephen Thuo Nyoike in Del Monte Farm
Stephen Thuo Nyoike met his untimely death at the age of 22 following a botched pineapple theft at the Del Monte Farm in Thika.
His body was found lying by the roadside with a pineapple adjacent to it. The botched pineapple theft accomplices revealed that Thuo Nyoike was being beaten with wooden clubs by the vast plantation guards following his arrest.
When his father was called to the scene, he found Thuo Nyoike’s body socked in blood with bruises on the head and injuries on the wrist.
An autopsy report revealed that Thuo Nyoike died as a result of blunt force trauma on the head and strangulation on the neck.
Bernard Murigi Manginye Murder by Del Monte Guards
26-year-old Bernard Murigi Manginye was murdered for allegedly stealing pineapples at Del Monte. When his father was called to the morgue, he could barely stare at the body of his son due to the damage it had been inflicted.
Five Del Monte guards associated with the murder were charged in court. However, the family has never been served with justice.
Bernard’s mother has on several occasions urged people of goodwill to help her get justice for her murdered son.
Saidi Ngotho Ndungu Murder Case at Del Monte
The decomposing body of Saidi Ngotho Ndungu was retrieved from the Del Monte dam in 2013. His murder case turned out to be an inquest despite the provision of concrete evidence by people who were with Saidi Ngotho in the last minutes of his death.
One of the witnesses revealed that Saidi pleaded with guards not to kill him. The witnesses claimed that they heard the guards throw something into a dam and they suspect it was the body of Saidi that was being dumped into the dam.
Among many other murder cases, Civil Societies have documented hundreds of assault and torture cases by the plantation’s security guards.
Kenyans have been left with unanswered questions on whether torturing and killing those who trespass or steal pineapples is a Del Monte Management internal policy.
