Detectives have disclosed that veteran journalist Gatonye Gathura was in possession of land files and intended to write an expose before his death.

Preliminary investigations conducted by detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) indicate that the expose would have shed light on a land dispute in the Ewaso Kedong area, a border between Narok and Nakuru Counties.

Sleuths are now probing the matter to establish whether the expose is directly connected to his death and whether some individuals were out to silence him.

An undated photo of police officers and detectives at a crime scene in Kenya -FILE

The journalist's body was found at the Naivasha Sub County Referral Hospital mortuary, a month after he went missing. This is after the Registrar of Persons took finger prints of the decomposed body.

A copper wire was found on his neck, an indication that he had been tortured before he met his death. “We are treating his death as murder. We suspect he was killed elsewhere and the body dumped in Naivasha,” Naivasha Sub County Police Commander, Samuel Waweru, stated.

According to his nephew, George Gatonye, the entire family was not aware that the seasoned journalist was missing for close to a month.

His nephew stated that the journalist was a secretive man and never opened up on what he was going through, making it difficult for the family to keep tabs with him.

The family had not received any threats or even any lead indicating Gatonye's life was at risk.

"He had not expressed fear for his life, it was clear my uncle was strangled by unknown assailants."

The scribe previously worked for the Nation and Standard newspapers. 

He, however, left the two media houses and started his own health blog by the name Health and Science blog called Rocket Science.