By Ebi Kesiena
Kenyan police have announced their inquiry into the suspected killings of four individuals on a Del Monte pineapple farm situated near Nairobi.
This follows months of heightened scrutiny after media reports suggested that security personnel on the same farm had previously been involved in the killing and assault of trespassing villagers.
According to David Kainga Mathiu, the Muranga county police commander on Thursday have launched investigations into the killings of people inside the Del Monte pineapple farm adding that after an extensive five-day search, two bodies were discovered in the river
Mathiu noted that the unfolding investigation will shed light on the circumstances surrounding these tragic events and address the broader concerns raised by previous reports of violence on the Del Monte pineapple farm.
While the friends and relatives of the latest victims are urging the government to intervene and provide an explanation for how the four individuals ended up in a river approximately 40 kilometers from the capital, Del Monte, the multinational food company overseeing the farm has asserted its cooperation with local authorities to bring the culprits to face the law.
The company released a statement asserting that their security footage, capturing the moment when the men attempted to steal pineapples, showed no wrongdoing on Del Monte’s part. According to the company, the footage instead depicts the alleged thieves fleeing towards the river as they attempted to evade security guards.
Earlier this year, a joint investigation by Britain’s Bureau of Investigative Journalism and The Guardian newspaper presented evidence suggesting that security guards associated with Del Monte had been involved in the killing and brutal assault of villagers suspected of trespassing on the Kenyan pineapple farm.
However, Del Monte had responded to these allegations by initiating internal investigations, with additional support from an independent review conducted by a specialist human rights consultancy.
