The murder of Risper Ndunge Vaati in Ruiru, Kiambu County, shocked residents in April 2023 after her husband, Morris Njuguna Mwangi, was accused of killing her and attempting to conceal her body in a suitcase.
Njuguna, then aged 28, and Risper, 27, had been living together as husband and wife for several months.
The couple worked at the same restaurant along the Eastern Bypass, with Njuguna employed as a chef and Risper working as a cashier.
Morris Njuguna Mwangi: How a Ruiru Chef Killed His Wife and Hid Her Body in a Suitcase
The murder of Risper Ndunge Vaati in Ruiru, Kiambu County, shocked residents in April 2023 after her husband, Morris Njuguna Mwangi, was accused of killing her and attempting to conceal her body in a suitcase.
Njuguna, then aged 28, and Risper, 27, had been living together as husband and wife for several months. The couple worked at the same restaurant along the Eastern Bypass, with Njuguna employed as a chef and Risper working as a cashier.
Their relationship took a tragic turn on the night of April 18, 2023, when the couple reportedly got into an argument at their rented home in Mitikenda Estate, on the outskirts of Ruiru.
According to details presented to investigators, the disagreement escalated into a physical confrontation. Njuguna later told detectives that he struck Risper's head against a wall, causing fatal injuries.
After discovering that she had died, Njuguna allegedly placed her body inside a suitcase. He then concealed the suitcase inside a sack before removing it from their home.
Investigators also relied on CCTV footage and other evidence gathered during the probe. The footage reportedly showed Njuguna moving with the luggage during the period when the body was believed to have been dumped.
Police later traced him to his ancestral home in Makuyu, Murang'a County. He was arrested on April 21, 2023, three days after Risper's death.
The investigation also led to the arrest of Njuguna's cousin, Francis Chege, after police found him in possession of Risper's mobile phone. Chege reportedly told detectives that Njuguna had given him the phone.
Njuguna was subsequently presented before a Ruiru court, which allowed investigators additional time to hold him as they completed investigations into the death.
The case initially proceeded as a murder prosecution, with Njuguna facing a charge under Sections 203 and 204 of the Penal Code. However, the legal proceedings eventually took a different direction.
The murder charge was later substituted with manslaughter under Section 202 as read with Section 205 of the Penal Code following a plea-bargaining process.
The matter eventually reached the High Court under the case Republic v Mwangi (Criminal Case E016 of 2023). In its decision delivered on March 17, 2026, the court dealt with the final outcome of the case.
Njuguna pleaded guilty to the manslaughter charge and was convicted. The High Court subsequently sentenced him to 30 years in prison.
The sentence brought an end to a case that had begun with the discovery of a woman's body hidden inside luggage in a residential neighbourhood in Ruiru.
The final court outcome is significant because Njuguna was not convicted of murder.
Although the prosecution initially treated the death as murder, the eventual conviction was for manslaughter following the reduction of the charge through the plea-bargaining process.
Risper's death therefore remains a case marked by a devastating domestic confrontation, an elaborate attempt to conceal the body and a police investigation that eventually led detectives from Ruiru to Murang'a.
Three years after her death, the High Court's 30-year sentence against Njuguna provides the final judicial chapter in the case, while highlighting the serious consequences of violent domestic disputes and attempts to conceal evidence after a fatal confrontation.