A mobile phone belonging to slain Multimedia University of Kenya student Sylvia Kemunto Ayaye was found among church offerings, the High Court in Kibera has heard, adding a new twist to the ongoing murder trial.
The revelation emerged during proceedings against Erick Mutinda Philip, who is accused of murdering the student on March 30, 2025, at the university's campus along Magadi Road in Lang'ata, Nairobi.
According to Citizen Digital, Pastor Hannah Faith Mukami, who serves as an administrator at Jesus Is Alive Ministries (JIAM), testified that church staff discovered an Oppo mobile phone while counting offerings on April 2, 2025, three days after the date prosecutors allege Sylvia was killed.
The pastor told the court that the church kept the phone safely until police officers arrived looking for it. Investigators reportedly informed church officials that call data had placed the deceased's phone within the church compound.
During cross-examination, Mukami confirmed that the phone presented in court was the same device recovered from the church offerings. The phone was subsequently handed over to the police as part of investigations into the student's death.
The Daily Nation reported that the testimony was heard before Justice Diana Kavedza as the prosecution continued presenting evidence in the murder case.
Sylvia's body was discovered on April 2, 2025, inside a water reservoir tank on the rooftop of a university hostel. According to testimony by university security chief Silas Ochieng Elphine Otieno, a search team had been looking for the missing student before checking the rooftop tanks.
The security official told the court that one of the tanks appeared to have been tampered with, with a stone placed on its lid. When the team opened the tank, they discovered a decomposing body inside. Police were alerted, and the body was subsequently identified as Sylvia's.
Nairobi Wire also reported on the recovery of the phone from the church offerings, highlighting the unusual discovery as a key development in the ongoing trial.
Another witness, Neununa Mounira Namatsi, a fellow student and close friend of Sylvia, testified about the relationship between the deceased and the accused. She described the relationship as troubled and told the court that Sylvia had considered moving to accommodation outside the university to avoid frequent encounters with him.
According to reports by Y News, the witness also recounted her attempts to reach Sylvia after she went missing. Her testimony formed part of the wider evidence being presented to help the court reconstruct the events leading to the student's death.
The proceedings have also heard from other witnesses, including Derrick Higai Luther, who shared a hostel room with the accused, and Meghan Nasserian Kihara, who had previously shared accommodation with Sylvia.
Their accounts have added further details about the people who knew the deceased and the circumstances surrounding her disappearance.
The discovery of Sylvia's phone among church offerings has attracted particular attention because the device was missing when the investigation into her death began. Its recovery became an important part of the evidence presented to the court.
However, the circumstances surrounding how the phone ended up among the offerings must be understood in the context of the evidence presented during the trial. The court will determine the significance of that evidence alongside the other testimony.
Erick Mutinda Philip is facing a murder charge over Sylvia's death. The case remains before the High Court in Kibera as witnesses continue to testify.
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