In Kenya, the investigation into the mass grave discovered in Kericho, in the west of the country, continues. Thirty-three bodies were exhumed on March 24. Young men hired as gravediggers by unknown individuals alerted the police. The governor of Nyamira, the neighboring county, confirmed on Sunday, March 29, that 13 bodies had been transferred from the hospital morgue for burial. He suspects corrupt officials.

According to Amos Nyaribo, governor of Nyamira, a county official received 32,000 shillings (about 215 euros) for the burial of 13 unclaimed bodies found in the Kericho mass grave, from the hospital morgue.

“The bodies were to be buried, in broad daylight, in a nearby public cemetery,” the governor continued, suspecting the official of embezzling the money and making a dubious deal with a private cemetery. Police now have four suspects in custody, including a health worker from Nyamira and the caretaker of the cemetery where the bodies were found.

In Kenya, the law requires hospitals to dispose of unclaimed bodies after 14 days in the morgue. However, the counties of Nyamira and Kssii, where the commune of Kericho is located, do not have a public cemetery. In this tea-producing region, land pressure is high. Furthermore, the Kalenjin community traditionally buries its dead in their gardens.

“The Kericho case reveals, once again, how easily bodies can disappear in Kenya,” laments Justus Wanga, a columnist for The Nation newspaper. In a 2014 report, a parliamentary commission had already highlighted the lack of legislation regulating funeral practices in Kenya.