This Kenyan Fashion Designer And LGBTQ Activist Found Dead In A Metal Box Has Finally Got Justice
A court in Kenya found Edwin Chiloba's friend and housemate Jacktone Odhiambo guilty of the murder.
This Kenyan fashion designer and LGBTQ activist who was murdered has finally got justice.
25-year-old Edwin Chiloba was found dead, with his body stuffed in a metal box by the side of the road near the town of Eldoret on Jan. 4, 2023.
Chiloba had been last seen on New Year’s Day after he returned home with friends.
After that, neighbors said they heard “commotions and cries which subsided after a short while” according to the New York Times.
Two days later, neighbors saw a car drive into Chiloba’s compound and two men loading a metal box in.
It was only after people reported a foul smell that Chiloba’s body was found stuffed inside the box, wearing a woman’s dress with socks stuffed into his mouth and a piece of denim tied around his face.
Police then detained Chiloba’s friend and housemate, Jacktone Odhiambo and three other suspects.
On Wednesday, Dec. 4, the court found Odhiambo guilty of murdering Chiloba.
DNA tests proved that Odhiambo deliberately suffocated Chiloba and stashed his body in a metal box with the help of his brother and cousin.
DNA evidence showed that the two had an intimate physical relationship but the court did not find a motive for the killing, according to AP.
Rights groups say the ruling is a significant step toward justice for the LGBTQ community in Kenya, where gay sex is illegal.
Odhiambo will be sentenced on Dec. 16.
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