National Press Photographers Association

Kenyan Police Retrace Photographer's Steps On Night Of His Murder

 

NAIROBI, KENYA (June 3, 2008) – A murder investigation into the death of photojournalist Trent Keegan, 33, who was found dead Wednesday in a drainage ditch near a main highway in the capital, has lead police to question the photojournalist's friends and roommate – but as of yet no suspects have been identified in his death.

Trent Keegan killed in KenyaKeegan was a New Zealand native who had been living in Ireland and working frequently in Africa.

Police have retraced Keegan's activities the night before his death, a police spokesman told The New Zealand Herald, including talking to one of the photojournalist's friends who was with Keegan at a bar that night. The friend may have been the last to see Keegan alive.

The friend told police that Keegan was carrying expensive equipment with him, including his cameras and laptop computer, when he left the bar and that Keegan was not comfortable carrying gear of that value with him in the city. The photographer was overheard negotiating with a taxi driver over the fare to the city's center but that the fare was too high. Apparently Keegan then decided to travel on foot.

When his body was found, police said, Keegan still had his wallet and money but the laptop and cameras were missing. A serious head injury appeared to be the cause of death.

The Herald reported that the photographer's father, Mike Keegan, is working to have his son's body returned to him in New Zealand as soon as possible. He would not comment on reports that his son had been investigating a land deal that would displace tribes in Kenya to make way for a safari park. There are news reports that local authorities have been helping with the land deal, and that Keegan had filed a complaint with police about being harassed by security people from the safari park.

Earlier story

 

NPPA Marketplace

Join the NPPA
NPPA members receive a wide range of benefits, from educational opportunities to mentoring, exclusive discounts, insurance options, business tips, and much more.