02/07/2026
The partially burned body of Berine Sylvia Achieng’ Aoko was found on her bed inside her apartment in Utawala, Nairobi, on the afternoon of April 28, 2023.
She was just 24 — a procurement graduate who was pulling night shifts at Swissport to cover the bills and help support her family back home. That Friday morning, she came back from work, walked into her apartment where her ex-boyfriend was already waiting inside, and was never seen alive again. She had her iPhone 13 and laptop with her when she entered. Around 2:40 p.m., neighbors caught the smell of smoke. The caretaker forced the door open and found her lifeless on the bed — with signs of assault and a clear attempt to set the place on fire. His clothes were reportedly burning near her feet. This wasn’t some random robbery or accident. It felt intimate, deliberate, and it tore her family apart.
Berine grew up in Homa Bay County in pretty modest circumstances. She had already lost her father in 2019 and was carrying the burden of looking after her mother and siblings. She pushed through university and later started grinding those night shifts. Even when life kept hitting her, she still made time for kindness — she wasn’t the type to turn people away.
The man last seen with her — and the main suspect — is Collins Nato Nyongesa. They had dated back when she was still in high school. He did printing work: T-shirts, posters, cards, and even helped with family burial clothes. The relationship had ended, but when he showed up later saying he had nowhere else to go, she let him stay. For about three months, they lived together in the apartment. She paid the rent, bought the food, and covered everything while working those exhausting shifts. She told friends it wasn’t romantic anymore on her side — she had moved on and was even talking daily to a man in Canada. She already had a Canadian boyfriend, but she still showed him that generosity.
CCTV caught her arriving with him already inside the unit. Later footage shows him leaving alone, as calm as if nothing had happened. He was the only other person living there and the last one confirmed to have been with her that day before he disappeared. He reportedly left with her iPhone 13 and laptop. His story to people, including Aoko's sister, had holes in it. His clothes were reportedly found burning at the scene. The autopsy showed she died from the assault — there was no soot in her lungs, meaning the fire came afterward. The burns were secondary, covering about 18% of her body. He vanished right after. No calls, no trace. He’s still wanted.
Her family, including her mother, Lorna Akoth, and sister, Emma Achieng’, only learned of the horror through chaotic calls from her workplace. They rushed from Homa Bay, saw the scene themselves, and have been vocal about how slow and frustrating the police investigation has been. The pain was crushing — they had already buried their father, and now they had lost one of the daughters they depended on in the worst way imaginable.
When Berine was finally laid to rest, she was buried outside the family homestead. According to the Luo cultural tradition observed by her family, an unmarried daughter is not buried within the main home compound.
Collins Nato Nyongesa, born on November 27, 1996, in Congoli Sub-location, Bukembe, Bumula Constituency, Bungoma County, is the son of Joseph Nyongesa Kubong and Evelyn Nyongesa. He hasn’t been arrested. Police named him the prime suspect early on because of the living arrangement, the last known contact, the way he disappeared, and the physical evidence reportedly left behind.
Some believe that Berine's decision to move on and her reported communication with a man in Canada, who was serious about marrying her, may have been a source of tension. However, investigators have not confirmed this, and it remains speculation rather than established fact.
Her family is still pushing hard for justice while Collins Nato Nyongesa remains at large.
This was the brutal end of a young woman’s kindness in a small Nairobi apartment. One ex who wouldn’t stay gone.
Disclaimer: Shared for awareness purposes only, with great sympathy and respect for Aoko's family.
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