A grief-stricken family from Komo village in Kiambu County has made a desperate appeal to the government to assist them get their son’s head skeleton held at the government chemist for three years now after the kin was mauled to death by marauding hyenas in the area.

Joseph Njuguna’s head skeleton remains were taken in at the government chemist for a DNA test to ascertain his origin.

The 63-year-old unmarried man was chewed to death by the prowling animals as he was herding their family’s livestock in a nearby bush in March 2017 when the flock of hyenas attacked him.

According to Frederick Kahuha Kamau, a brother to the deceased, the family got a distressing call from neighbors detailing where Kang’ethe’s clothes and gumboots had been found after the killer hyenas clawed him.

After finding his torn clothes and a few of his body joint bones in a pool of stinking blood, Kahuha said he gathered a team of young energetic men who trooped to the bushy forest for three days in search for other body parts.

“We collected the bones and the clothes and later reported to police who promised to initiate investigations in collaboration with Kenya Wildlife Services (KWS),” said Kahuha.

A few days later, Njuguna’s head skeleton was discovered a distance away from where the clothes had been found, near the cave that offers home to the hyenas.

“We took that to police also and it is from there that the skeleton taken at the government chemist for a DNA test. It has been three years now holding only a few bones that police gave us. We have never buried our brother and seeing his bones in our house every day has not only been traumatizing but also has had some of us experience psychological distress,” he noted.

The family has since been waiting for conclusion of investigations by policeand an outcome from the government chemist to be allowed to bury their loved one.

KWS, the family says has not been of help as they declined to offer them any support be it logistical or financialand instead referred them back to police. 

Since the death of Njuguna, his father Rymond Kamau, contracted stress and high blood pressure and succumbed to it a year later while his mother has been living a painful life trying to come to terms over how the tragedy befell her family.

“I actually burnt Njuguna’s clothes to try and get the picture out of my mind. It has been a painful experience for three years now waking up to see the dry bones of my unburied son,” said Margret Njeri, 90.

Residents from the remotely located village have also urged the government to separate them from the wild animals which they say have been infrequently attacking them in their homes causing them huge losses.