By Brian Kiprono - Reporter
Kenya, 7 July 2026 - The search for missing Kenya Forest Service (KFS) Legal Services Manager Esther Wairimu Keige has ended in tragedy after her body was discovered in a coffee plantation in Juja, nearly a month after she disappeared.
Police have launched investigations into the death of the 54-year-old advocate, whose body was found on Monday evening at Fusion Farm in Kiaora, Area 4 near Karimenu, Juja, Kiambu County.
Keige had been missing since 10 June, when she was last seen leaving her office along Kiambu Road in Nairobi.
Juja Sub-County Police Commander Isaac Kombo confirmed the discovery, saying a farm worker cutting grass stumbled upon the body and alerted his supervisor, who reported the incident to Juja Police Station.
Senior police officers who visited the scene found the body in an advanced state of decomposition.
Two family members later identified the remains, bringing weeks of uncertainty and anxious searching to a painful end.
The body was moved to the Kenyatta University Teaching, Referral and Research Hospital (KUTRRH) mortuary, where a post-mortem examination will be conducted to establish the cause of death.
Detectives are now piecing together Keige's final movements and the circumstances that led to her death.
According to investigators, students at a nearby school recently told police they had seen Keige alive after her disappearance. They said she had approached the school seeking food, a development that has become a key lead in the investigation.
Police have also recorded statements from family members as they seek to establish her movements, state of mind and the events leading up to her disappearance.
The motive behind her death remains unknown.
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Keige's disappearance had prompted growing concern within the legal fraternity and the Kenya Forest Service.
Days after she was reported missing, KFS issued a public appeal asking anyone with information about her whereabouts to contact police or the agency through designated hotline numbers.
She served as the Manager of Legal Services at the state agency.
The discovery has shocked colleagues and members of the legal profession, many of whom had hoped she would be found alive.
Advocate Caroline Oduor, who confirmed the news, described the discovery as devastating.
"After weeks of anxious searching since 9th June, Esther Wairimu Keige, Advocate has sadly been found dead," she said.
"My deepest condolences to her family and loved ones during this profoundly difficult time. May they find strength in the face of this devastating loss. May those responsible be identified, brought before the law, and held fully accountable."
Police say investigations are continuing as detectives work to determine how the senior advocate died and whether foul play was involved. No arrests had been made by the time of publication.
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