In two days, four bodies were found in a river at Del Monte’s pineapple plantations in Kenya.
The mysterious deaths are being investigated as homicides – and also include a body found in the area in November.
– It is quite visible on one of the boys that he has been seriously abused, says Peter Kamanzi, a relative of one of the dead.
On Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, four bodies were found on one of fruit and juice giant Del Monte’s pineapple plantations in Kenya. Now the police are investigating the suspected murders, write The Guardian.
The British newspaper has previously, together with the Bureau of investigative journalism, investigated allegations of brutal assaults and murders of security guards at the plantation in the town of Thika, about four miles north of the capital, Nairobi. The plantation is the largest exporter of Kenyan products to the world.
Earlier in December, the Guardian revealed that human rights groups were investigating another death at the farm after a man’s body was found in a pond in November.
Relatives and friends of the four men who were found dead on December 24 and 25 are now calling on the government to intervene to find out how they ended up in the river.
– Kenyan police have opened investigations into the killing of people inside Del Monte’s pineapple farm, says David Kainga Mathiu, police chief in the Muranga district.
According to the police chief, no one has been arrested, writes Reuters.
“Pineapple thefts are increasing”
On Wednesday, Del Monte stated that the US food company’s local operations are “cooperating with Kenyan authorities in their continued investigation into the circumstances surrounding the four bodies found in the Thika River”.
According to Del Monte, the autopsies on the bodies are still ongoing. In the statement, the company identifies the dead people as pineapple thieves.
“Our surveillance footage of the men attempting to steal the pineapples does not show foul play on the part of Del Monte, but rather shows them running toward the river after dropping bags of stolen pineapples while trying to escape from security,” said Del Monte, which has 6,000 employees. in Kenya, according to the Guardian.
“Organized crime, especially around pineapple theft, is increasing more and more in the area. We are actively looking for additional ways to help tackle organized crime as safely and effectively as possible.”
“Severely abused”
A search operation for the missing men had been going on for several days when two bodies were found in the river on Sunday. Then two more were found on Monday.
– When we found the first body, we started screaming, says Rhoda Wayua, the mother of one of the dead men, to the Kenyan television channel Citizen TV, according to the Guardian.
– After a while, the other body washed up. It was my son’s.
Another relative of the dead, Peter Kamanzi, says that at least one of the men had injuries that may have contributed to his death.
– It is quite visible on this boy, that he has been seriously abused, he says according to the Guardian.
Just over a month earlier, on November 17, 25-year-old Peter Mutuku Mutisya’s body was found in the area, four days after he told his friends he was going there to steal pineapples.
“Had strangulation marks”
His parents claim his neck had marks as if he had been strangled. But no injuries were recorded on the official report, writes The Guardian.
Del Monte said the company “cooperated fully with Kenyan authorities throughout the investigation”, and offered its “heartfelt condolences to the family”.
In June reported Guardian that the Kenya Human Rights Commission would investigate suspected murders and acts of violence by the security guards on the pineapple plantation. Then there had been two deaths in the past year, and three since 2019.
When a 22-year-old man was found dead on the plantation in August last year, two men who said they had accompanied him to steal pineapples said they saw security guards beating him.