Police in Endebess, Trans Nzoia County, have arrested a man believed to be the key suspect in the killing of a Form Four student.
In a statement on February 1, 2026, the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) said Mike Wabwire Semera was apprehended over the brutal murder of 17-year-old Rael Cheptoek Kaboi, a Form Four student at Nai Girls Secondary School.
The incident occurred on January 30, 2026, in the Mowlem area of the Kiptogoton location.
The arrest followed an alarm raised early that morning after residents reported a lifeless body in a nearby farm.
“Officers from Endebess Police Station rushed to the scene, about 700 metres from Rael’s mother’s home, where they found the teenager’s body bearing clear signs of assault,” the DCI said.
Police said the scene was carefully documented before the body was taken to Kijana Wamalwa Referral Hospital for preservation and an impending autopsy, as investigations commenced.
Preliminary investigations established that Rael had left home at around 5:45 a.m. for school, which is located less than a kilometre away. However, she never arrived, as her body was discovered at about 6:30 a.m. by fellow pupils heading to class.
A manhunt was launched, with detectives trailing the suspect to the Kenya–Uganda Suam border. A joint operation with Ugandan authorities led to his arrest after he allegedly fled across the border following the incident.
Semera has since been escorted back to Kenya and is currently in custody at Endebess Police Station, where he is undergoing processing ahead of his arraignment.
Detectives are still piecing together the case to establish the motive behind the heinous crime.
