Court hears about roommate’s unusual actions before girlfriend’s disappearance

A Multimedia University student has told a Nairobi court about the unusual behavior of his roommate, the accused Erick Mutinda, in the days leading up to the disappearance of his girlfriend, Sylvia Kemunto.

The witness, a second-year student, said he noticed actions that raised alarm and decided to recount them before the court.

He told the court that on Friday, March 28, 2025, Mutinda left their room, claiming he was visiting his sister. He returned hurriedly on Sunday, dropped his luggage on the bed, and left again shortly afterward.

“At around 4:20 pm, I came back to the room and saw Erick laying beside a person and trying to hide the feet of the person which had some Quitex,” the witness testified.

Later, while charging his phone at Mutinda’s bedside, he felt someone under a duvet cover but left at about 4:30 pm to attend a fellowship.

“I tried sitting on the edge of Erick’s bed since I was charging my phone there, and when I placed a hand on the bed, I felt someone, though the person was covered,” he added.

When he returned around 10:00 pm, the person under the duvet was gone, and he saw Erick trying to lie on a green suitcase, which he later moved beside his bed.

The following morning, around 8:00 am, Erick told him that his girlfriend was missing and that her mother had been asking about her.

That Monday evening, Erick slept in the room, and the next morning he was washing clothes when detectives from the DCI arrived.

Erick Mutinda before the Kibera law courts on January 26,2026

The witness said he first heard of Sylvia’s disappearance on Wednesday. Erick also called him on Thursday to ask about the case and later submitted himself to police early on Friday.

He added that he and Erick had been roommates for two semesters, that Erick had previously brought a girl to the house, and that he did not see Sylvia’s body, witness her death, or help conceal it.

The student denied being pressured to testify or assisting in concealing the body.

Sylvia Kemunto was a mass communications and Computer Science student who disappeared under mysterious circumstances on March 30, 2025, and was later recovered in a water tank on the rooftop of a university hostel.

Justice Diana Kavedza set the next hearing for March 16, 2025, when more witnesses are expected to testify.