Duncan Kimathi Sentenced to Death 14 Years After Murder of USIU Student Sarah Aruwa

A 14-year-old murder case has reached a major turning point after former United States International University-Africa (USIU-Africa) student Duncan Livingstone Kimathi was sentenced to death for killing fellow student Sarah Akello Aruwa in 2012.

The High Court found that Kimathi was involved in luring Aruwa into a trap, abducting her and demanding money from her family before she was murdered. The sentence follows a conviction delivered by Justice Kanyi Kimondo on 16 September 2026, after a lengthy trial that relied on witness testimony, telephone records and other forensic evidence.

Aruwa was a final-year International Relations student when she disappeared between 30 June and 1 July 2012. She had told a friend she was going to meet a man she had previously encountered at the university library.

What followed was a desperate search for the young woman, ransom calls to her family and an investigation that eventually linked Kimathi to the crime.

Ransom demands followed Aruwa’s disappearance

Court records show that Aruwa’s family received calls from a man demanding KSh100,000 for her release. The caller used her mobile phone, adding to the family’s fear that she was being held against her will.

Her mother, Hellen Atieno Aruwa, told the court that the family negotiated the demand down to KSh70,000 before reporting the matter to Kasarani Police Station.

Aruwa’s boyfriend, Duncan Okore, also testified that he called her on 1 July 2012 and a man answered, demanding KSh100,000. He later shared a threatening message with police.

The family’s efforts to establish Aruwa’s whereabouts ultimately ended in tragedy. Her body was found in a thicket at Ndithiati village in Ngewa, within Githunguri, Kiambu County.

A post-mortem examination established that she had suffered injuries to the back of her head and bruising around her neck. The cause of death was determined to be manual strangulation.

How investigators linked Kimathi to the crime

The prosecution’s case relied on several strands of evidence rather than a single eyewitness account of the abduction and killing.

Investigators recovered a notebook from Aruwa’s home. It contained a note saying she planned to meet a person identified as Daniel Muriithi, along with telephone numbers.

In his judgment, Justice Kimondo found that the identity had been used to lure Aruwa. Evidence presented in court linked one of the recorded telephone numbers to Kimathi.

The court also considered call data, evidence relating to a hired vehicle and items recovered from a house in Savannah associated with Kimathi’s girlfriend, Winnie Wairimu Kariuki. The recovered items included clothing identified as belonging to Aruwa, with forensic evidence linking them to her.

Taken together, the evidence persuaded the judge that the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt. Justice Kimondo found that the killing was deliberate and that the legal element of malice aforethought had been established.

Trial continued after co-accused absconded

Kimathi was charged alongside Kariuki, who later absconded after being released on bail. The court cancelled her bond and issued a warrant for her arrest.

In October 2022, the court allowed the case against Kimathi to proceed separately, without waiting for Kariuki to be found. The judgment delivered in September 2026 therefore concerned Kimathi alone.

The Director of Public Prosecutions, through a team led by Millicent Kigira, called 17 witnesses during the trial.

The length of the proceedings reflects how a serious criminal case can stretch across years as evidence is heard, witnesses testify and legal issues are addressed. For Aruwa’s family, the sentencing comes more than 14 years after her disappearance and death.

What the sentence means

Kimathi was convicted of murder under Section 203, read together with Section 204 of Kenya’s Penal Code. Recent reports say Justice Kimondo sentenced him to death following the conviction.

The sentence marks a significant development in the case, but the available reports do not establish whether an appeal has been filed or what further court proceedings may follow.

For now, the judgment sets out the court’s conclusion that the prosecution proved Kimathi’s responsibility for Aruwa’s murder beyond reasonable doubt. The case, which began with a young student’s disappearance in 2012, has reached sentencing after years of investigations and court proceedings.

About the Author

Maureen Onyango is a journalist passionate about storytelling, life coaching and spiritual lessons. She studied at the Kenya Institute of Management and enjoys telling stories that inform, inspire and empower communities.