KAMLOOPS, British Columbia — The vehicle a 24-year-old Kenyan woman Benina Jepkoech was driving has been located months after it plunged into the North Thompson River in Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada, renewing efforts to establish the whereabouts of the missing woman who hails from Lemook in Eldoret.
Jepkoech went missing on May 17, 2026, after the vehicle swerved from Schubert Drive near Birch Avenue in North Kamloops and entered the fast-flowing river at around 6:30 p.m.
According to friends, family and Canadian media reports, Jepkoech was travelling with a 21-year-old female passenger. Three bystanders rushed to the scene and successfully rescued the passenger from the submerged vehicle, but Jepkoech was swept away by the strong current before emergency crews could reach her.
Her close friend Jacinta Mugo, who had been with Jepkoech minutes before the crash, told the press that Benina had stopped by her house near Schubert Drive to borrow a blow dryer.
Mugo said Jepkoech had limited driving experience in Canada and had asked to drive as she was considering buying a car for herself.
"She wanted to eventually buy a car for herself, and she had not been driving, she'd never driven here in Canada before," Mugo said.
Mugo believes panic and confusion over driving orientation may have played a role. Jepkoech was used to Kenya's left-hand traffic system, as opposed to Canada's right-hand system.
"I think due to the panic ... she accidentally turned all the wheels to the right, facing the river. And then instead of probably pressing on the brakes, she pressed on the gas, and that's when the car flew and plunged into the river," she said.
Search teams launched an extensive operation in the days following the crash, using divers, boats and specialized equipment. However, dangerous conditions caused by spring snowmelt, high water levels, strong currents and poor underwater visibility forced authorities to suspend the search.
The discovery of the vehicle months later has now renewed the operation. While earlier reports in May and June indicated the vehicle had not yet been recovered, the latest recovery provides investigators with a critical reference point for mapping the current flow and narrowing the search area for Jepkoech, who remains unaccounted for.
Jepkoech, the second-born daughter of Paul Tanui from Tuiyo Village in Uasin Gishu County, had moved to Canada in April 2025 to pursue a Bachelor of Hospitality Management degree.
Friends described her as humble, respectful and hardworking.
She worked at a hotel in downtown Kamloops and also held a second job at Afrofusion restaurant as she worked to support her family back home in Eldoret.
She leaves behind a young son, parents and siblings.
Her family in Lemook, Eldoret, had banked their hopes on her to break the chain of poverty and support her siblings' education.
Her mother Sheila Tanui said she was in high spirits when they last spoke on video call a month before the accident.
"We are ready for any outcome, whether she's alive, whether she's not, we just want her to be found," Mugo said on behalf of friends at the time, a sentiment echoed by family members who held vigils in Brocklehurst, Kamloops, remembering her as a calm, kind and warm-hearted young woman.
The Kenyan diaspora community in British Columbia has been closely following the case, organizing prayer meetings and fundraising to support the family and search costs.
Authorities in Kamloops have not yet released details on the condition of the recovered vehicle or whether additional evidence was found inside. Investigators are continuing to examine the circumstances surrounding how the vehicle lost control before entering the river.
The family is appealing for continued support and prayers as efforts to locate Benina continue, with hopes that the vehicle recovery will finally bring closure.
