Saba Saba: Julia Wangui autopsy inconclusive but no signs of trauma

Pathologists are yet to establish the cause of death of Julie Wangui, who allegedly died under the custody of police after her arrest in connection with the Saba Saba protests in Nanyuki.

Wangui was arrested during the July 7 Sabasaba protests and reportedly sustained injuries while in custody. She later died in hospital.

The team, led by Peter Ndegwa, who was representing the Independent Medico-Legal Unit (IMLU), said the findings were inconclusive, with detected bleeding in the brain but no signs of trauma.

He said they needed two more weeks to complete the examinations on what caused the death of the 30-year-old woman.

“We are finding some things in the lungs, brain, pancreas and the liver, all of which can be contributory. There’s bleeding in the brain, which doesn’t look traumatic; we are not seeing direct injury to the head, so the bleeding is not a result of trauma. We will look at the organs in more detail histologically, and also do toxicology, ” Ndegwa told journalists.

He further stated that they will liaise with the doctors who performed surgery on her at the hospital. “The surgeons had done a craniotomy (open head surgery), and we want to see what the doctors found, which we don’t have right now. We hope to have the documents in two weeks. So everything is inclusive pending the examinations”.

She died after collapsing at the Nanyuki GK Prison, where she was held after failing to raise cash bail.

Family spokesperson Susan Rienye said they were satisfied with the preliminary results and will wait for the final report, expected on July 28.

Angry residents of Likkii Estate on Monday took to the streets to demand justice.

Her death adds to growing concerns over police brutality, coming just weeks after the death of blogger Albert Ojwang while in custody.