A mother’s world was shattered by a phone call bearing an unthinkable message: her son was dead, and the killers were on the other end of the line. The brutal murder of 30-year-old Jackson Marucha in Nakuru has left a family in agony and a community gripped by fear, highlighting a terrifying new level of cruelty among the city's criminal gangs.

This incident is not an isolated tragedy but a symptom of a deeper crisis. It lands amidst a rising tide of violent crime that is challenging the security fabric of Nakuru, a city already wrestling with the resurgence of notorious gangs like 'Confirm'. For residents, this killing is a stark confirmation of their worst fears—that gangs are operating with increasing impunity.

A Mother's Nightmare Unfolds

Sarah Owendi, Marucha’s mother, recounted the horrific sequence of events. Her son had been lured by the gang under the false pretense of recovering a lost phone. After abducting him, they carried out the murder and dumped his body. The final, cruel act was the call to Ms. Owendi, telling her where to collect her son's remains.

"He told me, ‘go to the sewage and collect your load, I've left it there,’" Ms. Owendi stated, describing the call that led her to find her son's body, which she said was stabbed multiple times. Reports suggest the killing was a punishment by the 'Confirm' gang because Marucha, a former member, had tried to leave the group and start a new life.

A City Under Siege

Marucha's murder is the latest in a series of violent crimes that have put Nakuru on edge. The city is now ranked as the fourth most insecure place in Kenya, with crime rates rising steadily over the past five years. This surge is linked to several factors:

• Gang Resurgence: Despite police crackdowns, gangs like 'Confirm', 'Mauki', and 'Gaza' are regrouping, evolving from fraud to violent robberies with firearms.
• Urban Growth: Nakuru's recent elevation to city status has led to a population boom, which experts note has also attracted criminal elements from other urban centers like Nairobi and Kiambu.
• Youth Unemployment: Limited economic opportunities leave many young people vulnerable to recruitment by gangs, who offer a false promise of success.

The same night Marucha was killed, 18-year-old Henry Ong'ae was also stabbed to death in the Flamingo Estate, another crime hotspot, underscoring the widespread nature of the threat. The brazenness of these attacks, including the recent killing of a police officer, has forced the National Police Service to form a special crime-busting unit to tackle the menace.

While police have confirmed that investigations into Marucha's death are ongoing, the perpetrators remain at large. For the grieving family of Jackson Marucha and the fearful residents of Nakuru, the question is not just whether his killers will be found, but whether the city can reclaim its streets from the grip of terror.