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Kenyan lawyer says slain teacher Gabrielle Maina’s wounds suggest she was executed

Kenyan lawyer says Australian teacher Gabrielle Maina may have been slain in "targeted attack".

Kenyan lawyer says Australian teacher Gabrielle Maina may have been slain in "targeted attack". Photo: AAP

The lawyer of Australian teacher Gabrielle Maina, who was shot dead in Kenya, fears it may have been a targeted killing.

Witnesses said Ms Maina was walking down a street on Thursday when she was attacked by armed men on a motorbike in the affluent suburb of Karen.

Kenya, and Nairobi in particular, have a high rate of armed robberies.

However, Ms Maina’s lawyer George King’ori said the angle of the bullet wound and marks on her skin suggest she may have been forced to kneel on the road before she was shot.

“She must have been kneeling down, and maybe begging for mercy,” George King’ori said.

“Because, there were markings on her knees, showing she was most likely kneeling.”

Police are investigating the killing, but no-one has been charged in relation to her death.

Ms Maina’s family and the Australian Government were being urged to continue asking questions.

“Yes, it is important for them to keep pushing until it is settled as to what caused Gabrielle’s death,” Mr King’ori said.

The community of Karen in Nairobi is still coming to terms with the death.

Ms Maina, originally from Armidale, NSW, moved to Nairobi in September 2015.

Her death has shocked friends and colleagues in the expat community, particularly those at the Hillcrest International School, where Ms Maina was the head teacher.

Pastor Chris Arnold, from the Karen Vineyard Church, said Ms Maina’s death had been devastating.

“The death of anyone rooted in our community is painful, but the tragic nature which surrounds the death of Gabrielle Maina this week has left many of us devastated, hurt and shaken,” he said.

-ABC

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