'Mentally unstable' man kills wife

A 60-year-old man, who is said to be mentally unstable, killed his wife after a domestic quarrel in a village in Laikipia.

Matopeni village in Munyaka division was thrown into mourning after news emerged that Sammy Kipkoech had killed his wife, Jane Chelagat, 54.

Area police boss Ben Changulo said the suspect hit his wife, a mother of seven, with a blunt object most likely a metal bar that is used to blow fire into a traditional hearth.

It is not clear whether the children were in the compound when the incident occurred.

Mr Changulo said that the suspect, who is in police custody, is mentally unstable. The couple is said to have quarreled.

According to the officer, the assailant's brother visited the home and found the deceased's body lying in a pool of blood.

Neighbours said that the assailant's nephew had gone to the home earlier after hearing a commotion but Kipkoech repulsed him.

"It was after the attack, during which the boy was slightly injured, that he fled and informed his father who rushed to the compound and found the lifeless body," said a neighbour.

In the neighbouring Matanya village, a 27-year-old woman slipped and drowned in a water pan as she fetched water.

Lucy Nyaruai drowned on Saturday noon. Her body was discovered by Paul Wachira who owns the water pan.

"Wachira saw a leso near the pan and a water container floating and he became suspicious. When he went to check, he found the deceased's body," area assistant Chief Patrick Mathenge said.

The body was taken to Nanyuki Teaching and Referral Hospital mortuary.