Man, woman commit suicide in unclear circumstances

By Antony Gitonga 

NAIVASHA; KENYA: Two people including a flower farm worker committed suicide in Naivasha in unclear circumstances in two different incidents.

The incidents incidentally in South Lake area left many in shock as police expressed concern over an increase in cases of suicides in the area.

In the first case, a father of five committed suicide by jumping into Lake Naivasha after he allegedly suffered from a mental break down.

The water vendor jumped into a deep tunnel in Kamere estate and drowned after efforts to rescue him failed.

According to a witness Amos Ngugi, the vendor was well known and many were shocked after he decided to take his own life.

"He looked troubled and he went to a section of the lake where there is a deep tunnel dug by one of the flower farms and decided to jump," he said.

Efforts to rescue him were thwarted by lack of a diver in Naivasha and it took over three hours to retrieve the body and take it to the mortuary.

In the second incident a woman from one of the farms was found hanging in her house after failing to report to her place of work for two days.

It’s alleged that family and work pressure forced the mother of three who was living alone to commit suicide in her one roomed house.

"She failed to report to her place of work and her colleagues broke into her room and found her dangling from a rope," said a witness.

Naivasha OCPD Charles Kortok confirmed both incidents saying that investigations into the suicides had started.

"The bodies have been taken to the Naivasha district hospital mortuary and we have started investigations into both incidents,” he said.