Former News Anchor Esther Arunga Formally Drops Name “Timberlake” via Gazette Notice

Former television news anchor Esther Arunga has formally relinquished her estranged husband’s surname, executing a legal deed poll to reclaim her maiden name, Esther Adongo Arunga, 16 years after her marriage to Quincy Timberlake.

According to Gazette Notice No. 16203, published on October 9, 2026, the legal change was executed on October 2, 2026, through her legal representatives, LAK Advocates, and registered at the Registry of Documents in Nairobi.

“Notice is given that by a deed poll dated 2nd October, 2026… Esther Adongo Arunga… formerly known as Esther Adongo Timberlake, formally and absolutely renounced and abandoned the use of her former name Esther Adongo Timberlake and in lieu thereof assumed and adopted the name Esther Adongo Arunga, for all purposes,” the notice reads.

Background and Legal History

Arunga adopted the Timberlake surname following her marriage to Quincy Timberlake in March 2010. The couple subsequently relocated to Australia, where their three-year-old son, Sinclair Timberlake, died in June 2014.

In 2019, Arunga was sentenced to 10 months in prison after pleading guilty to being an accessory to manslaughter, serving her sentence on parole.

Quincy Timberlake pleaded guilty in September 2023 to manslaughter in connection with the child’s death and was sentenced to an 11-year prison term. By mid-2026, he had completed the custodial portion of his sentence and was subsequently held in immigration detention in Australia.

The gazette filing lists a Nairobi postal address (P.O. Box 22568-00100) for Arunga, prompting public speculation regarding a potential return to Kenya, though her current physical location remains unconfirmed.