Identity Mix-up Leads to Abrupt Cancellation of Funeral in Kakamega County

By Jael Sada

A confusion over the identity of a deceased person occurred in Sirigoi Village, Bunyala Central Ward, Navakholo, Kakamega County. 

The funeral for Respa Khatsenzia, aged 64, was abruptly canceled after Kakamega Referral Hospital informed the family that the body they had was actually that of Susan Kungu from Shikokho Village in the Ikolomani Constituency, and not Respa as they had thought.

According to Wafula Weksenia, who represents the family of Respa Khatsenzia, they retrieved what they believed to be Khatsenzia's body on Monday. Following their customs, they performed traditional rituals, including the slaughter of two cows. They were shocked to later learn that the deceased was not their relative.

"We performed the family rituals for the deceased by slaughtering two cows to ensure that Respa is buried respectfully. However, we were shocked when we received a call informing us that the body we had was Susan's, instead of our beloved Respa," he said.

Evans Mutiti, the husband of Susan Kungu from Shikokho Village, Ikolomani Constituency, said he discovered that his wife's body was missing when he arrived at the Kakamega Referral Hospital mortuary.

"I was prepared to give my wife a peaceful rest, only to find out that her body was missing in the morgue and was instead taken by another family for burial," he said.

Local elders, led by Josephat Marani, expressed their disappointment and emphasized the need for rituals to remove bad omens from the family.

"We have to perform rituals to remove bad omens that may affect our family before laying our beloved Susan to rest. It is unfortunate that her body went missing in the mortuary, which calls for ritual performance before burial," he said.

They urged families to carefully verify the identity of their deceased relatives before removing bodies from the morgue to avoid similar mix-ups.

"I call for caution in the process of taking a body out of the mortuary to ensure that one has the actual body of their beloved, in order to avoid future mix-ups," Marani added.

Confirming the incident, the area's Deputy Chief, Ezekiel Makina, advised families to exercise caution when collecting bodies from the mortuary in preparation for burial.