Wife of slain Asian businessman Kumar arrested in murder probe

The wife of slain Indian businessman Jayesh Kumar Kanji was on Wednesday arrested over allegations of involvement in his brutal murder.

The woman identified as Velji Jayaben Jayeshi Kumar will remain in police custody for 14 days after being arrested and arraigned at the Kibera Law Courts. 

According to police, Jayaben was arrested after investigations revealed that she was in communication with one of the other four suspects in police custody, on the day her husband was killed and his body doused in acid.

There are now five suspects in custody over the murder of Kumar as the probe goes on.

The murder happened on February 14.

Among others, police are pursuing love triangles and business as the motives of the murder of Kumar. 

It is believed that the couple had domestic differences before Jayaben sought the services of a friend to “discipline the husband” which turned fatal. 

Jayaben appeared before Magistrate Irene Kahuya on Thursday after investigations revealed that she could have taken part in the murder plot against her husband who was killed and body doused in acid in Lukenya, Machakos County, on Valentine’s Day.

The prosecution requested 21 days to detain her as detectives continued with investigations but her lawyer Ifran Kassam, opposed the application requesting the court to grant the prosecution only seven days to hold her.

He said she is not a flight risk as police have her passport and that she lives with her son and mother-in-law who depend on her. 

The court granted the prosecution 14 days to hold her in police custody. 

“Jayaben is alleged to have been involved in the murder plot after phone analysis revealed that she was in contact with one of the four suspects who were arrested and arraigned at Kibera Law Courts on February 19th,” Magistrate Kahuya said. 

“She is reported to have asked the suspect to help discipline and torture her husband as the two had disagreements … The other suspect agreed and recruited others to execute the plan.” 

It is believed that Jayaben, who was captured on CCTV camera on Valentine’s Day walking in the company of her husband and son at around 7 am, made a call to the alleged killers to execute the mission. It is the same day he was abducted.

The other suspect is reported to have sent her a text three hours later informing her that they had finished the job. 

She was however disturbed that the husband had been killed yet the plan was just to beat and warn him as a discipline.  

Police say they are yet to conduct DNA tests on the bones that were recovered from the scene of crime believed to be those of Kumar. 

They also want to confirm the immigration status of two suspects who are Indian nationals and also ensure that all five suspects undergo mental examination before facing charges. 

Investigators say on February 14, this year, Kumar was seen with his wife and child walking along Kodi Road in Nairobi West.


Kumar is said to have been ‘picked’  by one Kaylan Verkariya Kaylan Shivji who was driving a Toyota Prado and proceeded to Machakos County.

This was the last time he was seen.
The following day, his brothers Hetish Kumar and Dipak Valji went to Lang’ata Police Station to report a missing person after Kumar failed to show up that evening.


They told the police that on February 14, their brother went to work in Rongai but he did not show up at his home in the evening.
His mobile phone was also switched off.


Later security guards who were on a normal patrol saw blood along a footpath which led them to a thicket where they found a checked shirt with blood stains, a shoe, underwear, metal rod and pieces of bones of an unknown person.

They alerted Kyumbi Directorate of Criminal Investigation (DCI) officers who collected the bones and documented the matter as an incident of an unknown person who had been eaten by wild animals.
The officers also collected the items, the bones and the metal rod.


Their counterparts at Lang’ata decided to triangulate Kumar’s calls which led them to Mbithi Munguti at Lukenya Conservancy whom they arrested at Athi River Tuff Foam area.

This is the same area where the remains were found. 
Lead investigator Violet Kyalayi told Kibera magistrate’s court that Munguti revealed that Verkariya allegedly kidnapped Kumar at Shell Petrol Station along Lang’ata Road on February 14.


It was alleged that Kumar was first hit on the head before being killed.
The plot involved two hitmen who were waiting deep in the conservancy.

Police say the group drove to Lukenya where they murdered Jayesh Kumar Kanji Velji, doused his body with a certain acid and dumped it there.

The suspects later led the investigations team to a remote area within Lukenya where they alleged to have dumped the body. 


The investigators also impounded the vehicle claimed to have been used in the mission.
They also arrested one of the alleged kidnappers in Tala while another was arrested at Gatitu in Mwala, Machakos county.

Police argued in court that the four were a flight risk as they now know that they will likely be charged with murder.

On February 20, police said they needed time to ascertain that the parts they had collected belonged to Kumar.


The court allowed the police to hold the four for 21 days before they decide on who to face what charges.