Months After Mass. Nurse Was Found Slain and Mutilated in Airport Garage, Suspect Is Arrested Overseas

Kevin Kangethe was arrested in a nightclub in Kenya on Monday in connection with the killing of nurse Margaret Mbitu, who was found dead in November

A man has been arrested in Kenya months after a Massachusetts nurse was found slain and mutilated inside a car in the parking garage of Boston's Logan International Airport in November.

Massachusetts State Police said Kenyan authorities arrested Kevin Kangethe, 41, a Boston-area man who was wanted for the murder of Margaret Mbitu, 31, on Monday night. The arrest took place in a nightclub in Nairobi.

According to a news release from police, Kangethe flew to Kenya shortly after allegedly killing Mbitu, with whom he had been in a relationship.

“Ms. Mbitu's body was located in a parked car in the Central Parking garage at Logan International Airport on the evening of November 1, 2023,” the release read, adding that the victim had been reported missing by her family prior to the discovery of her body.

Per CNN, police said Mbitu was found dead in the front passenger seat with slash and stab wounds on her face and neck and a puncture wound to her side.

Authorities claimed that Kangethe, who lived in Lowell, had bought a plane ticket to Kenya the morning before the discovery. Surveillance footage showed him leaving the parking garage, entering the airport terminal and checking in for a flight.

According to a criminal complaint obtained by local media outlet Boston 25, license plate recognition cameras allegedly picked up the location of Kangethe’s vehicle and it appeared consistent with the location of Mbitu’s phone.

Investigators tracked Kangethe’s Toyota SUV from Lowell to the Logan Airport parking garage, where they found Mbitu dead.

After the investigation identified Kangethe as the suspect, detectives obtained a warrant charging him with murder in connection with Mbitu’s death. Investigators then began working with the State Department Diplomatic Security Service, Interpol and Kenyan authorities to locate Kangethe in Kenya.

Kangethe is expected to appear at a preliminary court hearing in Kenya within the next few days, according to the news release. The process to extradite him to Boston for prosecution has begun.

It's not immediately clear if he has a lawyer.

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Mbitu’s family said in a written statement, per Boston 25, “We are overjoyed by the news of the capture of Maggie’s murder suspect. The long hand of the law is finally catching up with Maggie’s murder suspect. We have confirmed with law enforcement and the DA of the arrest of Mr. Kangethe in Kenya and are waiting on the next step of extradition and eventual prosecution.”

“We want to thank our friends, law enforcement here in the US and in Kenya, and the community at large for the efforts in the capture of Mr. Kangethe. We are confident that the truth will prevail and that justice for Maggie will be achieved,” they added.

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