Kevin Kangethe, the Massachusetts man who immediately fled to Kenya after he allegedly killed his girlfriend and left her body in a car at Boston airport garage, was on Monday arrested at a nightclub in the East African nation.
In a statement, the Massachusetts State Police said that the 41-year-old suspect was arrested in the capital, Nairobi, by Kenyan authorities. Kangethe is said to have fled to Kenya after 31-year-old Margaret Mbitu’s body was found in a car at a garage at Boston Logan International Airport on November 1, 2023, NBC 10 Boston reported at the time. That was two days after she was reported missing.
Authorities said Mbitu suffered large slash wounds on her face and neck area as well as a puncture on her side. Kangethe is said to have checked into a flight to Kenya after he obtained airline tickets on November 2.
After Mbitu’s body was found, authorities in the statement said that State Police Detectives “obtained a warrant charging KANGETHE with Ms. Mbitu’s homicide and began working with the State Department DSS, Interpol, and Kenyan authorities to locate him in Kenya.”
“Law enforcement officials in Kenya had tracked KANGETHE’s whereabouts while state and federal authorities here coordinated his apprehension,” the statement added.
Authorities said the 41-year-old suspect is set to appear at a preliminary court hearing in Kenya in the coming days, adding that the process to extradite him to Boston for prosecution has been initiated.
In a statement, Mbitu’s family said they were “overjoyed by the news” of Kangethe’s arrest, Boston 25 reported.
“The long hand of the law is finally catching up with Maggie’s murder suspect. We have confirmed with law enforcement and the DA of the arrest of Mr. Kangethe in Kenya and are waiting on the next step of extradition and eventual prosecution,” the statement added.
“We want to thank our friends, law enforcement here in the US and in Kenya, and the community at large for the efforts in the capture of Mr. Kangethe. We are confident that the truth will prevail and that justice for Maggie will be achieved.”