Ngumba, 45, a
reporter for Radio Kwizera, was found dead in Kajuhuleta Forest,
northwestern Tanzania, three days after he was reported missing by his family
and friends, according to local journalists and local
reports. Ngumba’s former wife, Rukia Yunus, said he had left their home in
the evening of January 5, 2013, to go to the town center, but never returned, according to news
reports.
Ngumba was found
with a gunshot wound in his left arm and marks on his neck that suggested he
had been strangled or hanged, according to local journalists who interviewed
the coroner. A gun was found
lying next to his body, along with two mobile phones and 10,000 Tanzanian shillings
(US$6.25) in his pocket, according to news
reports.
Residents of the
rural Tanzanian region of Kigoma where Ngumba was killed suspect the reporter
may have been targeted for a November 2012 story concerning a gruesome murder
by a local cattle owner, according to local
reports. The story claimed a local cattle owner had brutally wounded
a shepherd under his service, according to reports.
The Tanzanian Editor’s
Forum conducted an
investigation into Ngumba’s case, but were unable to determine whether the
killing arose over Ngumba’s reporting or a dispute over local farming issues,
Secretary General Neville Meena told CPJ.