Additional arrests being made in connection with the death of a Kenyan LGBTQ activist.

According to media sources, Kenyan police have detained additional suspects in the murder of LGBTQ activist Edwin Chiloba, whose mangled body was discovered on a roadside put into a metal trunk.

Following the brutal murder of Chiloba in western Kenya’s Rift Valley, rights activists have demanded increased protection for LGBTQ people.

On Friday, police announced that they had detained a freelance photographer who was allegedly a longstanding friend of the 25-year-old victim, a prominent member of Kenya’s LGBTQ community and a model and fashion designer.

According to media reports stating police officials, three further individuals were seized on Saturday for their alleged involvement in disposing of his remains.

Chiloba’s body, which was apparently dropped from a moving automobile, was found some 40 kilometers (25 miles) outside the Rift Valley town of Eldoret.

The family was preparing for a burial on Saturday, according to The Star newspaper, although a post-mortem would be performed on Monday.

Last week, an unnamed Eldoret-based police officer reported to the media “He died a painful death,  “They must have tortured him and then gouged out his eye. It appears he was strangled.”

Volker Turk, the UN human rights chief, expressed on Saturday his “shock” at Chiloba’s passing.

“Standing in solidarity with LGBTQ!+ activists around the world. Urgent need to redouble efforts for their protection,” he said on Twitter.

Solomon Ayele Dersso, the human rights commissioner for the African Union, echoed his demand in a statement he released on Saturday condemning Chiloba’s murder and asserting that it appeared to be “a product of hate.”

Dersso pleaded on Kenya to launch a “open, exhaustive, and swift inquiry” into the killing and apprehend those involved.

In addition, he urged Kenya and the other AU members to take action to guarantee that “all vulnerable members of society, including those who are or are perceived to be different from the mainstream members of society, including on account of their sexual or gender identity, are guaranteed to live a life free from the threat of violent attacks.”

Chiloba’s execution, according to the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights, came after the unsolved murders of numerous other activists for the rights of sexual minorities, including Sheila Lumumba, Erica Chandra, and Joash Mosoti.

“The continued targeting of those perceived to be different is worrying,” the state-run but independent rights watchdog said.

“The National Police Service should step up efforts to ensure Kenyans feel safe, and are not arbitrarily attacked or targeted for their perceived beliefs or associations,” he added.

No human life is worth less than another’s, according to Amnesty International, which demanded “speedy investigations into (Chiloba’s) barbaric murder.”