For three years, Zipporah Tabu Obura has lived with the brutal reality of her son’s death. Kennedy Olilo Obura was found dead in a bathroom at a villa in Mvindeni, Diani, with blood on the walls and floor, and injuries to his chest and elbow.
What began as a routine trip to serve as best man at a wedding on November 3, 2023, ended on November 5 with his body identified by his father.
The family has since sold properties and spent millions chasing justice.
Safaricom’s Alleged Defiance
The family is now turning directly to President William Ruto after Safaricom allegedly defied a clear court order for three months.
Key details:·
The Magistrate Court in Mombasa issued an urgent order on March 4, 2026 (Case No. MCINQ/E009/2024)· Safaricom was ordered to provide: · Phone signal records for numbers around Kennedy’s devices between 11 PM on November 4 and 9 AM on November 5 at the Diani location · M-Pesa transaction records for several numbers linked to persons of interes.
The company received the order on March 10, but three months later, the family says compliance has been only partial.
One transaction involving suspect Carlos Omondi allegedly sent after the death and later reversed was missing from the statements supplied.
The father, James Obura Obonyo, described the omission as intentional.
A Pattern of Data Privacy Violations
This case is not an isolated incident. Safaricom has a documented pattern of data practices that courts have repeatedly condemned:
May 2026 Ruling
Justice Bahati Mwamuye ordered Safaricom to pay Sh900,000 each to eleven petitioners (total: Sh9.9 million plus costs)·
Between 2018-2019, employees extracted and sold sensitive subscriber information to betting companies including Betika and OdiBets·
Data sold included:
M-Pesa histories, betting activity, geolocation, and device data·
The operation potentially affected 11.5 million subscribers·
A manager allegedly built an algorithm to mine the data, with records moved to Google Drives and personal laptops
The court rejected Safaricom’s attempt to blame rogue individuals, finding systemic failures in governance, oversight, and security.
David Mokaya Case
Safaricom admitted in court that location and subscriber details were handed to the DCI based on a letter alone.
without a judicial warrant· Mokaya is now suing for up to Sh200 million· The High Court has barred further disclosure without consent or valid authorityOther Concerns·
The Law Society of Kenya has petitioned over alleged illegal data sharing during the 2024 protests· Human rights groups have raised concerns about Safaricom enabling routine access by security agencies without mandates.
Family’s Plea for Presidential Intervention
The Obura family has exhausted legal avenues and now seeks presidential help.
The mother has vowed to confront President Ruto in Mombasa and name every person and institution she believes is blocking answers.
The family has also called for the return of Belgian national Laurence Ghislaine Seneschal, repeatedly named as a key suspect and one of the last people seen with Kennedy alive.
They have appealed to the Belgian Embassy.
The Bigger Picture
The inquest before Senior Resident Magistrate David Odhiambo continues, adjourned into September.
The court order carried a penal notice warning that disobedience carries consequences.
yet three months later, the family is still waiting.
Key contradiction:
Safaricom’s privacy statements claim strict adherence to lawful mandates, but court records show selective permeability data flows easily for commercial interests or certain state requests, yet becomes elusive when a grieving family holds a court order in a murder inquest.
The question remains whether accountability will finally reach a company whose systems have repeatedly failed the citizens whose trust and money built its empire.
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