Lavington Apartment Tragedy: Neighbours Recall Generous Woman Found Dead Weeks Later

 Neighbours of a young woman whose body was found in her Lavington apartment weeks after she disappeared have described her as generous and warm-hearted.

Mercy Maina was last seen outside the building where she lived handing gifts to children before she went quiet. According to neighbours, she had also entrusted her cat to one of them, asking that it be looked after in case she was not around.

Her absence was not immediately noticed until a foul smell started coming from her house, prompting tenants to complain to the building manager Musa Kombo. Kombo said he went around asking residents to open their doors for inspection, but Mercy's house remained locked and her phone calls went unanswered.

After failing to reach her and confirming with the house owner that there was no communication from her, the management reported the matter to Muthangari Police Station. Police officers forced open the door and discovered her body inside, roughly a month after she was last seen alive.

Her mother Grace Nderitu said she last spoke to Mercy in early August and she sounded completely fine. She remembered her daughter as a bubbly and jovial person who loved her family deeply and dreamed of one day building a house for her mother.