Tragedy as man in Meru kills mother and grandmother

A family in Imenti Central, Meru County, is in shock after a 27-year-old man went berserk and killed his mother and 90-year-old grandmother.

Residents of Ngeene village in Mwanganthia location were thrown into mourning on Sunday when Jamleck Muriithi reportedly made good his threat “to kill somebody one day”.

The family says Muriithi made the threat several times in the last five years.

Mr Reuben Kabujo recounted how he fought off his violent son. In just an hour, Muriithi had killed his mother Zipporah Mutura, 50 and grandmother Tiritha Karimi.

Mr Kabujo said his son waited until most area residents had gone to church before accosting him around 9am.

He said Muriithi started hurling insults and saying family members had accused him of smoking bhang.

“I was under a tree taking tea when Muriithi walked towards me and started shouting. In vain, I attempt to calm him down. I told him: ‘Nobody has ever accused you of using bhang’,” a distraught Mr Kabujo said.

“Suddenly, he attempted to hit me. He took off when I dodged his blow and hit him, shouting obscenities and vowing to finish me.”

Mr Kabujo added that he thought his son had gone to the farm.

“I then heard three bangs. I did not know that he had gone to his grandmother’s house and picked an axe to fight me. He met her on the way,” he said.

Mr Kabujo added that he ran in the direction of the noise and was horrified by what he saw.

His mother was sprawled on the ground, her head split into two. Fearing for his life, he took off, not knowing that Mutura was still in the compound.

“I ran fast and reported the killing of my mother to the area head. As we were talking, we heard people shouting that Muriithi had also hacked his mother to death,” he said.

Villagers said that after killing his grandmother, Muriithi heard his mother wailing in the house and followed her there. He hit her on the head several times.

Relatives said that after the two killings, Muriithi dashed into his house, changed clothes and took off.

He was accosted by a mob but was saved from lynching by Gaitu police station officers who took him into custody.

Muriithi’s sister, Juster Kathuraniri, said he had a habit of threatening everyone, including her children when she visited her parents.

“He told my children on many occasions that he would punish them for unspecified mistakes they had committed against him. I never took it seriously until last Sunday,” the 32-year-old said amid sobs.

Area chief, Godfrey Bundi, said the family has been living in fear of being harmed by Muriithi.

“It is the first such incident in this village. I advise families with these kind of people to take their threats seriously. The problem must be resolved before it gets out of hand,” he said.