Shock as Murang'a man slays wife, children and hangs himself

A village in Makuyu, Murang'a County, is in shock after a man killed his wife and two sons before taking his own life.

Bernard Kiiru, 30, from Mowlem village is said to have slashed his wife, 22-year-old Teresia Wambui Ndirangu, and their children, Peter Ndirangu and Joseph Kahiu, aged four and one respectively, with a machete before hanging himself.

But before he hanged himself, Kiiru is said to have stabbed himself in the stomach using the same knife in the 6am incident yesterday.

A neighbour said Kiiru and his family moved to the village just three weeks ago after he landed a job as a farmhand.

His employer, Mr Mwangi Wachira, is said to have gone to his house in the morning to ask him to wake up so he can milk cows but there was no response.

POOL OF BLOOD

Wachira then called neighbours who helped him break the door. They found the three bodies lying in a pool of blood as Kiiru's dangled on a rope.

A shocked Wachira described Kiiru as a polite man who lived well with his family. He said he had never witnessed conflicts between Kiiru and his wife since the time he employed him.

"I engaged him three weeks ago and I have not seen him misbehaving. I have not known him as a confrontational man. He was polite. I am so shocked," said Wachira.

A neighbour, Mr Peter Chomba, said Kiiru and his family have not shown any signs of domestic conflicts since they moved to the village.

Murang'a County police commander Ms Naomi Ichami said they have already launched investigations into the matter.

She appealed to residents with information regarding the family to volunteer it to the police to facilitate investigations.