Dafton Mwitiki as described by those close to him, was a shrewd businessman who co-owned a restaurant in Nairobi alongside a Chinese national. He went missing on March 11, 2020. His vehicle was found in a thicket near Juja Oakland Estate after an unidentified person was found driving it.
According to the police, Mwitiki was a member of a notorious kidnapping ring that extorted millions of shillings in the form of ransom from families that wanted to secure the freedom of their loved ones.
Police investigated two kidnapping incidents to the end; mobile phone numbers were registered to the businessman, putting him at the centre of both crimes.
Kidnapping late politician Mark Too’s grandchild
Mwitiki was linked with the kidnapping of late politician Mark Too’s granddaughter on January 13, 2020.
According to the police, the then-university student was abducted in Nairobi’s Kileleshwa area and driven to Kisumu. The kidnappers demanded a Ksh20 million ransom.
Retired President Uhuru Kenyatta was made aware of the matter and ordered security agencies to spring to action and rescue the girl.
Against police advice, some family members negotiated a Ksh4 million settlement with the kidnappers.
A family member drove to Kisumu and delivered the money to a makeshift structure near Maseno University on January 17, 2020. The kidnappers had cautioned the family against involving police in the matter if they wanted the girl back home in one piece.
After collecting the money, the masked man directed the family on where to find the girl only after their car had left. The girl later emerged from a distance away, and was driven by her relatives to Nairobi.
Police stated that the mobile number used by the kidnappers to communicate with the family was registered to Mwitiki. He rarely used the number to communicate with his relatives.
Another Kidnapping
Dafton Mwitiki was also linked with the kidnapping of a Chinese national on February 27, 2020, where a ransom of Ksh100 million was demanded.
Detectives from the National Intelligence Service (NIS) tracked the kidnappers to a warehouse and killed four individuals, including an administration police officer.
An officer privy to the case told the Standard that the kidnappers used sophisticated communication equipment, but the mobile number was registered to Mwitiki.
The Chinese national was said to be a business partner of Mwitiki.
During the rescue of the Chinese in Jamuhuri estate, police towed away a saloon car that was found in the compound.
The owner of the car went to Kabete police station and recorded a statement saying he had leased it to Mwitiki for use and produced documents to back the claims.
The Chinese businessman, according to police reports, was kidnapped from his shop on February 27 by individuals impersonating officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI).
Missing Report
Dafton Mwitiki was reported missing on March 11, 2020, after he failed to return home. His car was discovered on Kimbo-Kiganjo Road, near Juja Oaklands Estate.
A security guard who spoke to the police noted that they spotted the vehicle parked there at around 5 am. It had been driven and abandoned by an unidentified man.
Police recovered documents and cards belonging to Mwitiki from the car. The security guards denied knowing who drove the vehicle to the coffee farm.
Mwitiki was last seen driving from his office off Galana Road in the Kilimani area, Nairobi.
CCTV footage showed a man driving out of Galana Plaza in the Land Rover before it vanished off the cameras on Thika Road. His phone was said to have lost signals around the Thika Road Mall area while speeding towards Juja that night.
Double life
Mwitiki burst into the national limelight during the dusitD2 Nairobi terrorist attack when he was pictured at the scene alongside city politician Steve Mbogo holding big guns. Mwitiki was a reputable figure in shooting circles, having represented Kenya in the 2019 International Defensive Pistol Association Southern Nationals Shooting Competition in South Africa.
On one hand, Dafton Mwitiki was a loving father to his two children and a man who always lent a helping hand to whoever needed it.
“The other image is the opposite. A darker shade of the man. We believe he was one of the key leaders of a brutal, well organised kidnapping gang responsible for high caliber disappearances in and around the city. Many people had paid ransom for release of their kin,” a senior officer aware of the probe said.
His family maintained that the businessman was not a criminal.
