Spate of killings involving women, again, begin to disturb Nairobi and its environs

Nairobi's skyline at night. [Denish Ochieng, Standard]

The evil that has been lurking in the Kenyan society now and again sending women to an early grave could be creeping back to Nairobi and towns around it. The last seven days have seen the lives of four women cut shot.

In Kasarani, police have launched a manhunt for a man said to have killed his ex-girlfriend.

The man said to be aged 40 has been on the run for the last nine days after it was reported to the police that he assaulted his ex-wife leaving her for dead at a house in Kahawa West estate.

Eunice Njeri, 33, becomes the latest woman to have lost her life in the hands of a man who she once trusted and adored.

In the last seven days, at least four women have been killed by their lovers according to data by the police.

Strained Relationships

Three of the cases have been reported in Nairobi while the fourth case was reported in Machakos county. All four incidents have a common thread.

They all revolve around a strained relationship.

On the night of March 29, at around 11 pm, Njeri, a mother of one left her workplace at Kiwanja area in Kahawa west where she operates a bar.

She had been separated from the father of her only child for close to eight months. She had moved houses and friends and relatives said she had started a new life with another man.

On the fateful night, Njeri was in shock when she arrived home to find her ex-husband in her house. In the same house was Njeri’s 14-year-old daughter.

Police investigations have revealed that prior to the visit by the suspect, the two had held several meetings in efforts to iron out their differences but these interventions had failed.

So when Njeri found this ex-husband, she was not amused.

Neighbors in this residence have told the police that around midnight, they heard a commotion from Njeri’s house.

Njeri was screaming while the man was shouting and banging on the door. And when the neighbors finally managed to access the house, they found Njeri and her daughter lying on the floor.

There was blood all over the floor. Njeri and the daughter had been seriously injured. 

Mother and daughter were rushed to a hospital in Kiambu where she died on April 2 after five days in the Intensive care unit. Her daughter is currently in hospital where she is receiving treatment for injuries sustained during the night attack.

Kasarani DCI chief Vincent Kipkorir said the man who attacked Njeri also injured the daughter.

Kipkorir said his officers are hunting for the man. Police say the motive of the killing was love gone sour.

On the same night, at Dandora phase 1 estate, the bodies of two women were found in their rented house by the police.

It was around 8.30 pm when Bernard Munga Kamande received a call from his younger brother who also lives in the same estate.

The caller told Munga to visit his rented house immediately without giving details.

He (caller) hinted that something had happened and that the police or his neighbors were likely to break into the house.

Soon after this call, Sebastian Kamande, 28, switched off his phone. The brother tried calling back without success.

Munga in statements recorded at the Dandora Police Station said he immediately proceeded to the house where his brother lived with his wife Rahab Gathoni.

He was at this house at around 9.10 pm. On reaching the place, the door was locked from outside. The lights were on and despite the persistent knock on the door, there was no response from inside.

Munga sought help from Dandora police station and officers who accompanied him together with neighbors; they broke into the two-room house.

Inside the house, the sight of two women lying side by side on a bed greeted the officers.

It was a ghastly scene of crime. The two women were half-naked. One of them, who appeared to be in her late 20s had blood oozing from her ears and mouth.

She was gasping for breath when the police arrived. The second woman lay motionless on the bed.

Crime Scene investigators noted that her entire body had started changing color and developing dark marks on the face and hands.

The two women were confirmed dead as the police prepared to rush them to hospital for medical examination.

In the sitting room were two plates of rice which the two women are believed to have had for supper.

The leftover food has since been collected by the DCI crime scene investigators for lab test to establish if the food was laced with poison which the two women could have consumed.

On Friday evening, three days after the puzzling incident, detectives from the DCI Crime Research and Intelligence Bureau arrested Sebastian Kamande who is said to be the husband of Rahab Gathoni - one of the dead women.

Police investigations have revealed the identity of the second woman as Abigael Gathoni. The two women are first cousins.

DCI chief George Kinoti said on Twitter that Kamande will assist the police in investigations into the murder of the two cousins.

Police said the suspect was arrested as he returned to Nairobi from Embu where he had been hiding for three days.

“What followed was an immediate change of mission and a dramatic arrest along the highway as the suspect was ejected from a vehicle he had boarded, in a well-coordinated operation monitored at the Cyber and Digital forensics operations room,” the DCI said.

The suspect has since been handed over to investigators at Dandora Police Station where he is being held for questioning.

At Buruburu DCI offices where the investigations are being conducted, police say they have learnt of a domestic quarrel that could have led to the death of the two women.

According to the investigators, Rahab had invited her cousin (Abigael) for a meeting at her house on March 28. Abigael was Rahab's confidant on the matter of her relationship.

BururBuru DCI Chief Jackson Muriuki said a week to the murder of the two cousins, the couple had visited their family home in Makuyu where the parents sought to mend the relationship between Kamande and the wife.

On April 1, Police in Mlolongo arrested a man who reportedly disappeared after his wife was discovered dead at their house in Machakos.

Harrison Mutisya Muiva who was nabbed at a lodging in Mlolongo where he is said to have attempted suicide. He will be helping Machakos police in investigations into the mysterious death of 35-year-old Faith Mutinda.

The mother of one, a daughter, was found inside a house with her throat slit. Her car was also missing from the compound. The deceased was an auditor at Kenya Railways.

Prior to the arrest of the suspect, the deceased's car was found abandoned in Makueni County on March 30.

Machakos County Director of Criminal Investigations Simon Waithaka said the suspect would be charged in court.

Friends and colleagues have revealed that Mutinda and the man being investigated for murder lived in the same house.

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