A heart-wrenching scene in Thika rapidly gained attention online as a devastated businessman witnessed the sale of two of his lorries – valued at millions – in what he asserts was an illegal auction.
In a viral video, Rufus Kiretai’s voice cracks with grief. He stands beneath glaring sunlight, tears carving tracks down his dust-smeared face.
Around him, his young daughters in crisp school uniforms wail, a picture of shattered dreams and livelihood slipping from their grasp.
“I have paid! I have paid!” he screams, veins pulsing in his neck. But the auctioneer’s hammer has fallen. Two lorries – registration KDB 265U and KCU 122U – are gone.
Kiretai says the ordeal began after a 2018 accident involving one of his trucks. Though his driver was acquitted in court, Kiretai agreed to compensate the bereaved family out of court.
The agreed amount: about KSh 1 million – a fraction of the original KSh 2.5 million demand. He’s already paid KSh 700,000.
But before he could finish paying off the balance, an auctioneer – identified locally as Eliud Wambu – reportedly swooped in.
Without adequate notice or due process, the two vehicles were seized and sold off to recover alleged outstanding debt and fees.
The result? A fortune vanished amidst a whirlwind of dust and legal chaos. The lorries, which once served as Kiretai’s source of income, have now been taken away, leaving his family exposed and at risk of eviction, as well as facing potential school dropouts due to unpaid fees and rent arrears.
A crowd gathered outside the auctioneer’s office, rumbling with sympathy and outrage.
Online, Kenyans reacted in shock and anger, condemning what many called predatory practices and a broken system that allows livelihood-destroying seizures.
“This isn’t just about trucks,” one commenter wrote online.
“It’s about families being crushed in the gears of a system that should protect, not prey on, them.”
Thika: Children watched their father cry after auctioneers seized his 2 lorries…
This is how some systems break families, how many more stories like this exist?
pic.twitter.com/4wiN8CW3im— Henry Kabogo 💧 ❄ 🇰🇪 (@Kabogo_Henry) February 9, 2026
Auctioneers in Kenya are regulated by law, which requires clear notices and fair processes before movable property can be sold to satisfy debts.
READ ALSO: Jeff Koinange stops auction of his KSh 200 million homes after last-minute deal with NCBA Bank
Critics say incidents like this highlight why that framework must be enforced – or reformed.
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