A Catholic priest from Nairobi, Kenya, died under mysterious circumstances on Saturday morning after spending the night with his alleged lover at a hotel in Murang’a County.
The priest, Joseph Kariuki Wanjiku, 43, had reportedly checked into the Monalisa Hotel in Gatanga Sub-county on Friday evening, accompanied by a 32-year-old woman identified as Ruth Nduhi.
According to the hotel staff, Kariuki was a regular customer who was amiable, vivacious but secretive. He ordered some liquor and chicken for himself and his companion, and retired to their room. The staff knew he was a priest, but they did not interfere with his affairs.
Trouble started on Saturday morning when Nduhi noticed that Kariuki was slipping into unconsciousness. She panicked and alerted the hotel management, who assigned a driver and another employee to help her.
They covered the naked and unconscious priest with a hotel bed sheet and put him in his personal car, a Toyota Harrier.
Meanwhile, officers from the Samura Police Patrol Base arrived at the scene and witnessed the priest’s condition. They saw white foam oozing from his mouth and nose. They assigned two officers to escort him to Kenol Hospital in Murang’a South Sub-county.
However, it was too late to save him. He was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital. The cause of his death is still unknown and under investigation. Samples of drinks and food consumed by the couple were collected and preserved for further analysis.
Nduhi, who claimed to be Kariuki’s colleague at Ruai Parish where he served as a Catholic priest at Archdiocese of Nairobi, was questioned by the police and gave her account of the events. She was later released on bond pending further investigations.
The incident has shocked many people who knew Kariuki as a devout man of God and a farmer in the Mangu area. His body has been moved to Mater Hospital Mortuary in Nairobi. His family and church are yet to comment on the matter.
The case has also raised questions about the celibacy vow that Catholic priests are supposed to uphold. Some people have called for reforms in the church to allow priests to marry if they wish, while others have condemned Kariuki’s actions as immoral and sinful.
