The tragic death of Martin Mugambi, a Form 2 student at Miangeni International School, has left his family and the public with more questions than answers.
What began as a routine school day turned into a nightmare for his parents, who received a brief and chilling call from the school on Monday evening: “Mtoto wenu amechukuliwa na polisi” (Your child has been taken by the police).
The caller offered no further details before hanging up.
Mugambi’s parents, who live in Meru County, had no choice but to wait until the next morning to make the long journey to Makindu.
But upon arrival at the school, they were met with cold indifference. No director, principal, or deputy principal was present to receive them. Instead, the Board of Governors (BOG) chairperson was the one to deliver the devastating news,Martin Mugambi had been found dead in the school’s swimming pool.
His body had been moved to Makindu Sub-County Hospital as investigations by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) got underway.
The official statement from Miangeni International School describes Mugambi as appearing distressed on Sunday, February 9th, while cleaning his classroom.
Later that afternoon, during a scheduled swimming session, he was seen sitting quietly by the poolside before leaving early.
His last known sighting was later that evening while washing his clothes. According to the school statement, By Monday morning, when the dormitory patron noticed he was missing, the school launched a search that ended in tragedy—his body was discovered floating in the pool.
However, when his parents arrived at the mortuary to view his body, they noticed something alarming, Mugambi had a swollen head and was bleeding from his right eye and nose.
These injuries raised serious doubts about the school’s explanation of how did a drowning victim have injuries.
In a move that has fueled speculation, the school disabled comments on its official WhatsApp groups and social media pages on Monday just as news of Mugambi’s death began to spread.
Parents and students were left in the dark, with no communication from the administration until Wednesday.
This lack of transparency has led to growing concerns that there may be more to the story than the school is admitting.
Mugambi was no ordinary student. At the end of Term 3 last year, he ranked second in his class with an A plain. He was a class prefect and a talented performer who represented the school at the Kenya National Music Festivals in Eldoret.
