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For more than three years, Eloges Paul Christian Kadima Mwambay, the man believed by the detectives to have been behind the murder of lawyer Elizabeth Koki, led a quiet life in Kenya, preying on unsuspecting Kenyan ladies as he hid from facing justice in South Africa.

A sweet talker, with the unbridled ability to convince an Eskimo into buying ice from him, Kadima lived on the sweat of prosperous Kenyan women, whom he assaulted and intimidated into utter silence.

The man, whose proverbial 40 days of a thief first sneaked into the country in September 2017 using a Nigerian passport.

Investigations by the People Daily established that the man first put up with a female friend whom he had met through Facebook, in Nairobi’s Pangani estate, barely two months after the South African police had issued a warrant of arrest for him over assault.

The South African police had issued an arrest warrant for Kadima  on July 3, 2017 after he had assaulted a lady by the name Miranda Jacobs. Since then, Kadima has always been on the run as he led a false life to escape arrest.

 “An application is hereby made for the issue of a warrant for the arrest of Eloges Christian Kadima on a charge of assault with the intent to do grievous bodily  harm there being from information taken upon oath a reasonable suspicion that he/she committed the alleged offence on June 24, 2017 in Johannesburg,” a police report from South Africa stated.

In the report, the detectives also disclosed that they had launched a hunt down for Kadima whose whereabouts remained unknown.

How Kadima found his way into Kenya still remains a mystery that Kenyan detectives are now trying to unravel.

But the lady he had first stayed with in Pangani confided in PD how she became suspicious of Kadima because he was always requesting for more time to stay with her on grounds that a friend who had been housing him in Pangani was planning to go back to his parents’ home. 

“I finally agreed and allowed him to stay with me and after months,  I even introduced him to my family and made things official because we were set to marry.  But things changed along the way,” she said. 

Frequent fights

Their relationship did not however last for long as they were frequently engaged in fights, leading her to kick Kadima out of her house.

She never heard of  him until June 2020  when Ms Koki (deceased lawyer) reached out to her and informed her that Kadima had badly assaulted her while they were inside their car. 

“I warned her against associating with him and even informed her that he was wanted in South Africa over similar cases. She assured me that she would report the matter to police to  ensure that he pays for the wrongs he had committed,” our source said. 

This was the last time the two spoke until on Friday evening when the lady heard the news that her ex-lover had been arrested in connection to the death of the lawyer. 

In South Africa, Ms Miranda, the victim who had led to the issuance of an arrest warrant against Kadima, described as a man with a sweet tongue with the ingenuity to sweet talk anybody either into or out of anything. He always had his way out of anything even in times of trouble.

Miranda  said that when she learnt of his Kadima’s arrest on Saturday morning, she quickly posted on her Facebook page about her tribulations   in  the hands of the murder suspect and even said how she warned Kenyan ladies not to associate themselves with him. 

“I called out for anyone with the right connections to ensure that police in Kenya are made aware  that they had arrested a wanted man with  several assault cases in South Africa as well,” Ms Miranda said. 

Asked on how she met Kadima, Miranda disclosed that he had invited her to a party, from where they began their relationship after a brief interaction. She later realised that she was dealing with a crook when he noticed his love for borrowing money with repaying.

Work permit paper

During their stay together, Kadima always  informed  her that he was working on his job permit papers, a similar trick that  he used when he met his first Kenyan lover who housed him for months. Ms Miranda said that she was shocked on the first day Kadima assaulted her and  she quickly reported the matter to the police. 

However, when he learnt about it, he went under and fled  South Africa to seek refuge in Kenya.

A South African constable privy to the case there their Kenyan counterparts have already informed them about Kadima’s arrest.

 “We are aware that he has been arrested and we shall work together with the Kenyan authorities  to ensure that his victims  get justice,” the officer who spoke in confidence as they are not authorised to speak to the media said. 

Another South African victim,  Beatrice says she had to be rushed to hospital after Kadima had beaten her up. Beatrice was four years ago embroiled in a court case with Kadima after he allegedly assaulted her when she questioned his tricks. 

Speaking to People Daily from her Johannesburg home she disclosed  :  “He assaulted me and left me to die but I was taken to hospital. In the hospital, doctors issued a report indicating that  I suffered fractured bones which I presented in court,” she said. 

According to her, their differences began in 2016 when Kadima insisted on picking up an Audi TSI sports car from the dealers after she had completed payments. But the dealers would hear none of his demands, insisting that Beatrice picks the car by herself.

The People Daily has established that Kadima grew up in South Africa after his parents and other siblings moved from DR Congo. 

Kadima and his siblings who hold South Africa citizenship, have been having issues over their papers with the authorities since 2015.

Kadima is also wanted in Dubai where he is accused of having assaulted yet another woman before he fled the Arabian country and returned to South Africa. 

During his arrest, Kadima was identified as a Nigerian national but South African police and his past victims insist he is Congolese.

Machakos County DCI boss Charles Mutua said the suspect has multiple identities. According to him, Kadima uses a Nigerian passport but claims to be Congolese with South African descent.

“His papers are questionable. He does not have travel documents but we shall find out his details in due time,” he said.

Koki’s lawyer Kevin Muchiri yesterday said that he had linked the two South African victims with the Kenyan authorities to share their tribulations.