Residents in the cold following revenge mission

Residents of Vumilia and Tanzania villages in Uasin Gishu County express their anger during a meeting convened by area leaders to quell tribal tensions between two communities after the body of a middle aged man was retrieved from a river. There were accusation of murder. However the police ruled it as drowning. 03-10-2017. PHOTO BY: KEVIN TUNOI

Residents of Chesuwe spent Monday night in the cold after residents of neighbouring Kipsebwo and Kaptien attacked the location on a revenge mission following the killing of two of their kinsmen.

The two men, aged 20 and 28, were killed by a mob in Chesuwe centre on suspicion that they were part of roaming ritualists allegedly killing people in Chesuwe and taking off with their body parts.

However, the two were vindicated after it emerged that they were innocent and that they were mistakenly killed by the Chesuwe mob.

The avenging villagers complained their sons were killed in a gruesome manner by the mob - that cut off their body parts before stabbing the two men to death with machetes.

Angry residents attacked Chesuwe baying for the blood of the killers and unleashed chaos that lasted the better part of Monday.

They also set ablaze two shops in Chesuwe centre.

The villagers also sought to punish the area chief and his assistant for standing by as the mob ran amok.

Slain men

Carolyne Kosgey, 30, who spoke on behalf of relatives of the slain men, said the two were attending a funeral in Chesuwe when they were accosted by vigilante groups who questioned their presence in the area.

"The Chesuwe vigilantes accosted our sons on their way to a funeral; they accused them of being strangers and ritualists who have been killing residents," said Ms Kosgey.

While defending himself, Assistant Chief Michael Kitur told The Standard that the mob had threatened him with death if he interfered.

"By the time police arrived the two were in critical condition and died shortly after on their way to hospital," he added.

Police lobbed teargas canisters to disperse hundreds of residents who had blocked the Kapsabet-Nandi Hills-Kericho road.

County Commissioner Lucy Mulili's attempt to calm the residents were rebuffed by the angry kinsmen, who accused her of protecting the killer mob.

"The county commissioner has sent security to protect the chief and his assistant and has chosen to ignore the list of suspects who killed our sons,” complained one man.

But Ms Mulili said investigations had commenced to ensure that the "real killers" were arrested.

The residents of Kaptien and Kipsebwo have sworn that they will not bury the two men until the killers are arrested and prosecuted.