University student and girlfriend found dead in Meru, suicide suspected

MERU: A second year university student and his girlfriend were Friday found dead in the girl’s house at Kamboo in Igembe Central, on Thursday, in unclear circumstances.

According to Joyce Muthenya, Ann Kendi's mother, her daughter's boyfriend, named as Dennis Kirimi, a student at Mount Kenya's Nkubu campus, the two were found sprawled in the house, and a herbicide and a bottle of juice on the table.

According to Igembe Central OCPD Patrick Mbarire, the young man had apparently hang himself but the weight of the body cut the rope, making it fall to the floor.

"We don't know who killed the other, but we are investigating," Mbarire told The Standard.

According to the mother, Kirimi's body was on the floor, while the lifeless body of her daughter was on the bed.

Ms Muthenya, who knew Kirimi as her daughter's boyfriend, prepared eggs for the two lovebirds on Wednesday, when Kirimi came visiting.

"At 11 in the morning today (Friday), when knocks on my daughter's house elicited no response, my son suspected something amiss and he broke down the door. My daughter's body was on the bed,” the tearful mother said.

But Geoffrey Meme, the young man's father, said he had no idea he was in the village, since he had already dispatched him to campus.

"I handed him his fees on Tuesday, so I am shocked to learn he was in the village," he said.

Area chief Jonathan Kirimi said the incident had been reported and investigations would be conducted to establish what really happened.