Detectives pursue crucial leads into KNH murder

Detectives are trying to establish the motive behind the gruesome murder of Gilbert Kinyua Muthoni, a patient at Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) where nobody seems to have noticed the killer.

 There was speculation that Kinyua's murder could have either been an inside job or was carried out by a stranger who walked into the ward accomplishing the mission.

  The incident has raised serious concerns about the safety and security of patients at the country’s largest referral hospital.

 The circumstances surrounding Kinyua’s death present a disturbing reality. How did an admitted patient, under medical care and in a monitored ward, fall victim to such a brutal attack?

 According to KNH, ward 7B housed 54 patients on that fateful night, with four nurses on duty, performing routine check-ups at 9 pm, midnight, 3 am, and 6 am.

 KNH management insists that nothing appeared unusual during the earlier checks.

 “On Thursday, February 6, 2025, Mr Kinyua's condition was observed to be stable, and the day proceeded as normal. The night shift team took over without noting any undue concerns. The nursing staff attended to him at 9 pm, midnight and 3 am and no abnormalities were reported during these routine checks,” said Dr. William Sigilai, the KNH acting Chief Executive Officer.

 Sigilai stated that in light of the incident, they have heightened and enhanced security measures across the hospital to ensure the safety of more than 1,800 patients, staff, and all visitors.

 Despite the hospital’s reassurances, Kinyua’s murder raises critical questions. Was the assailant an outsider who somehow gained access to the ward? Or was the threat from within, possibly from another patient or an insider?

 “At this point, we do not have evidence that anybody walked in and committed a crime. We know for a fact that the patient was murdered in the ward. We have handed over the matter to the DCI,” said Sigilai.

 So far, The Standard has learned that a knife, suspected to have been used in the brutal murder of Kinyua, recovered within the facility is now under forensic analysis by the DCI.

 The weapon has been sent for DNA testing, not only to identify any traces linking it to the victim but also to determine whether a fellow patient in Ward 7B could have been responsible for the crime.

 Investigators are also matching DNA samples from patients in the ward to establish any possible connection to the attack.

 KNH insists that it has put in place stringent security measures, including CCTV cameras in common areas and a police presence within the hospital premises.

 Sigilai defended the hospital security setup, stating that the facility receives more than 30,000 visitors daily and that maintaining tight security across the hospital’s multiple entry points is a challenge.

 “We have many more security officers today compared to 2015 when the last recorded murder at KNH occurred. We have many more CCTV cameras than we did at that time. The hospital has also grown in size, with more departments offering specialized services. This means our security concerns have also increased,” he explained.

 

Kinyua’s murder is not the first security-related incident at KNH. In 2015, a patient was also killed in the hospital, an incident that remains unresolved to date.

 “With respect to the previous incident in 2015, ten years ago, which was the first one on record in the more than 130 years of Kenyatta National Hospital's existence, that matter is still in court. It has never been concluded,” Sigilai noted.