JUJA, Kenya — Police in Juja have launched a manhunt for four knife-wielding suspects accused of attacking a group of university students during a content-creation outing, an incident that left 21-year-old Technical University of Kenya (TUK) student Derrick Angwenyi Bundi, alias Omollo, dead.
Bundi, a third-year student at TUK, died after falling into an approximately 40-metre-deep abandoned quarry while fleeing the attackers during the robbery ambush at Kigwe Farm in Juja South.
Police said the suspects confronted the group at around 6 pm on September 1 while the students were filming digital content at the isolated location.
Initial reports circulating on social media incorrectly identified Bundi as a student at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT). Police records have since clarified that he was a TUK student.
Students ambushed while filming content
According to a police report filed under OB 11/01/09/2026 at Juja Farm Police Station, Bundi had travelled to the area with friends for a content-shooting picnic.
The group included Daniel Mutie Kivuva, 22, Sunday Odhiambo, 23, Biphon Mobisa Ondimu, 21, a Kenyatta University student, and Ann Wanjiku, 19, a JKUAT student.
The students had walked from Juja township, where they reside, and reached the scenic but isolated area at approximately 4:30 pm.
The location, according to the police account, is surrounded by thickets and abandoned quarries and is situated some distance from nearby settlements.
At about 6 pm, the group was filming digital content when four men allegedly emerged and ordered them to surrender their mobile phones.
The suspects were reportedly armed with knives.
Student falls into abandoned quarry
The attack triggered panic as the students attempted to escape through the surrounding bushes.
Three members of the group managed to flee from the attackers.
Bundi, however, fell from the edge of an unfenced open quarry pit, plunging about 40 metres to the bottom.
Police said he struck a rock and suffered severe head injuries and fractures to both legs, dying at the scene.
The circumstances have drawn renewed attention to the dangers posed by abandoned and unfenced quarry sites, particularly in isolated areas where residents and visitors may be exposed to significant risks.
Suspects steal phone and flee
The attackers allegedly took a Samsung A16 mobile phone belonging to Ann Wanjiku before fleeing into the surrounding thickets.
Bundi’s iPhone was recovered near his body.
Daniel Mutie also sustained a sprained arm after falling while attempting to escape the attackers, according to the police account.
The suspects escaped before officers arrived, prompting detectives to begin tracing them using information gathered from the scene and witnesses.
The allegations against the four suspects have not been tested in court.
Police launch manhunt
Juja Police Commander Isaac Kombo confirmed that a team of officers visited the scene after a local resident reported the incident.
The team included the Sub-County Police Commander, Juja Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) officers and Crime Scene Investigators (CSI).
Detectives processed the scene and recovered Bundi’s body from the quarry under difficult conditions.
The body was subsequently taken to the General Kago Morgue in Thika, where it was preserved pending an autopsy.
Police said investigations are continuing as detectives work to establish the identities and whereabouts of the four suspects.
Police pursue leads
Commander Kombo said the suspects had managed to escape before police arrived, but detectives were pursuing multiple leads.
He expressed confidence that the suspects would be arrested as investigations continue.
The case remains under active investigation, with detectives expected to examine evidence recovered from the scene, statements from survivors and other information that could help identify the attackers.
For Bundi’s family, friends and fellow students, the outing that began as a content-creation picnic ended in tragedy.
