Pregnant schoolgirl and boda boda lover commit suicide

Subukia,Kenya: A pregnant schoolgirl in Subukia committed suicide moments after learning that her lover had hanged himself.

The Form Three student and a boda boda operator identified as Peter, 23, ended their lives within hours of each other on Wednesday.

Witnesses said the boda boda operator was the first to commit suicide after the parents of the girl warned him against flirting with their daughter.

Joseph Wachira, a neighbour of the girl's parents, said the student had intimated to her mother that she was pregnant, marking the beginning of friction between the two.

"The girl told her mother that she was pregnant and she started threatening to  throw her out of their home," claimed Wachira.

He said the relationship between the mother and her daughter had deteriorated.

"Things were not working out for mother and daughter because of the pregnancy," said Wachira.

Area Chief Norman Kiiru said the girl's mother had warned the boda boda operator against contacting her daughter. When he ignored the warning, she organised for his arrest but he was later released.

Villagers believed the threat could have prompted the boda boda operator to commit suicide.

Mr Kiiru said the body of the boda boda operator was found dangling from a tree on Wednesday night.

When news of the tragedy reached the girl, she hanged herself in her parents' house.

"The girl got information that her lover had committed suicide and decided to take her life yesterday morning," said Wachira.

Mwereri Secondary School Principal Margaret Macharia confirmed that the girl was a student at the institution.

"The girl was a Form Three student and we had not noticed anything strange about her and we are shocked to learn she had committed suicide," said Mrs Macharia.

She said she had reported the incident to the district education officer in Nakuru and investigations would be conducted to establish what might have led to the suicide.

Subukia OCPD Alex Nga'nga' said his officers had recovered suicide notes but the families had requested they should not be shared.

He said his office had opened investigations into the incidents though the families of the deceased had requested that no post-mortem examination should be done.

The bodies were taken to Nyahururu mortuary.