NAIROBI, Kenya- Detectives investigating the murder of clinical psychologist and mental health researcher Dr Victoria Nthunya Mutiso have arrested three more suspects in a coordinated operation spanning Nairobi and Kampala.
The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) said on Sunday, August 30, that two suspects were arrested in Kampala with the assistance of the Uganda Police Force, while a third was intercepted in Nairobi.
The two suspects arrested in Uganda are Police Constable Bett Kiplangat Collins, service number 118491, attached to Thogoto Police Station, and civilian Pius Muiru Mbugua.
The pair were traced to Kyanja Heights flats in Kampala’s Nakawa suburb following forensic analysis, according to the DCI.
They are being held at Jinja Road Police Station pending an escorted return to Kenya.
The third suspect, Samuel Karanja Gathoni, alias “Lawyer”, was intercepted in the Langata Multi-Media area in Nairobi as he headed towards Ongata Rongai.
The DCI said investigations had established that PC Bett allegedly played a surveillance role and served as co-driver to Daniel Mwangi Njoroge, whom detectives have identified as a central organiser of the alleged operation.
Njoroge was allegedly driving a Toyota Land Cruiser Prado, registration KDH 600A, which investigators say was used to box in the Uber vehicle carrying Dr Mutiso on the morning of July 29 in Upper Hill, shortly before she was shot dead.
Detectives also allege that Mbugua acted as a key link between the alleged execution team and the person who contracted them.
According to the DCI, Mbugua served as a paymaster, moving money for logistics and the movement of the alleged hit team.
The latest arrests come after investigators had previously described the July 29 killing as a carefully planned operation.
Earlier investigations linked the murder to a long-running land dispute involving property in Athi River, Machakos County.
The DCI said the suspects held in Uganda are being prepared for escorted return to Kenya, where they will be processed and arraigned in accordance with the law.
The agency also used the latest update to reject claims that suspects in the case had previously been arrested and secretly released or that security officials had facilitated their escape.
The DCI described such claims as false and accused unnamed political actors of spreading what it called “reckless, inflammatory and unsubstantiated claims” aimed at undermining public confidence in the investigation.
The agency said the arrests in Kampala demonstrated that the investigation had continued despite the suspects’ movement across the border.
“Flight delayed the file. It did not close it,” the DCI said.
The latest arrests add to an investigation that has already seen several suspects placed in custody as detectives seek to establish the full chain of people allegedly involved in planning, financing and executing Dr Mutiso’s killing.
Dr Mutiso was fatally shot on July 29, 2026, after an Uber vehicle in which she was travelling was allegedly intercepted in Nairobi’s Upper Hill area.
Earlier DCI investigations said she was shot three times before being rushed to Kenyatta National Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
The DCI previously identified Police Constable Elijah Kibelion Kimoi, attached to Karinde Police Post, as the alleged gunman in Dr Victoria Mutiso’s killing.
Inspector Kenneth Kipkemboi Sang, then attached to Nderi Police Post, was identified as the alleged link between the financiers and the operational team and was accused of supplying the firearm allegedly used in the murder.
The latest arrest of PC Bett Kiplangat Collins in Uganda adds another serving police officer to the list of officers named in the investigation, with the DCI saying he handled surveillance and acted as co-driver.
The DCI has urged anyone with information that could assist the investigation to report to the nearest police station or contact its #FichuaKwaDCI hotline on 0800 722 203 or WhatsApp number 0709 570 000.
