According to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations, officers are examining a series of transactions amounting to approximately KSh60,000 allegedly withdrawn from the clergyman’s mobile money account hours after the fatal attack in Lanet, Nakuru County.
Detectives are now seeking to establish whether proper customer verification procedures were followed by the M-Pesa agents who processed the withdrawals across different outlets within Nakuru town.
Investigators believe the suspects deliberately avoided making a single large transaction and instead carried out multiple withdrawals in small amounts from different shops.
Some of the transactions reportedly involved amounts below KSh2,000, a strategy detectives suspect may have been intended to avoid attracting suspicion or triggering security alerts.
Authorities are now tracing the sequence of withdrawals and analysing CCTV footage, transaction records and witness accounts from the affected mobile money outlets.
Police say the investigations could help establish the movement of suspects after the murder and reveal whether additional individuals may have knowingly or unknowingly facilitated the transactions.
The case relates to the killing of Rev Ndumia at PCEA Tabuga Parish in Lanet.
Detectives allege that four armed men stormed the church compound during the night after disguising themselves as police officers.
According to investigators, the attackers first confronted the security guard on duty, Bernard Nyamwaka, before allegedly torturing him and forcing him to guide them to the cleric’s residence located inside the compound.
Police further claim the suspects gained entry into the pastor’s house after falsely presenting themselves as law enforcement officers carrying out official duties.
Once inside, the attackers allegedly restrained both Rev Ndumia and the guard before assaulting them and searching the house for valuables over several hours.
Rev Ndumia later died from severe head and neck injuries sustained during the attack.
The security guard survived and was rushed to Nakuru Teaching and Referral Hospital for treatment before later being placed under witness protection.
So far, two suspects identified as Beryl Nafula Otenyo and Felix Odinga Okumu have been arrested in connection with the murder.
A court allowed police to detain the suspects for 21 days to enable detectives to complete investigations, including DNA analysis and forensic examination of evidence recovered from the crime scene.
Police also confirmed that Rev Ndumia’s mobile phone was allegedly recovered from the suspects and has now become central to tracing the suspicious financial transactions.
Investigators are expected to use forensic analysis of the recovered phone and SIM cards to determine how the funds were withdrawn and whether additional accomplices were involved.
The murder has continued to generate public outrage, with church members and residents demanding swift justice for the slain cleric.
Authorities say investigations remain ongoing as detectives work to piece together the full chain of events surrounding the killing and the alleged misuse of the pastor’s mobile money account.
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