Murang'a woman helps kill son who tried to rape her

The deceased found his mother at her maize farm and cut her hand, prompting the woman to make a distress call. PHOTO | FILE | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • Mr Njuguna's pleas to have his mother forgive him fell on deaf ears as she watched the flames consume her son.

A 60-year-old woman from Matithi Village in Kiharu, Murang’a County participated in the killing of her son via mob justice after he attempted to rape her.

The bizzare incident has left locals shocked, while at the same time celebrating the death of Kennedy Njuguna, 31, who is said to have been involved in a series of criminal activities in the recent past.

On Thursday evening, the deceased found his mother at her maize farm and cut her hand, prompting the woman to make a distress call following which neighbours and members of the public arrived promptly.

The irate mob responded with fury and cornered the suspect who had tried escaping.

They beat him up before his biological mother poured petrol on him and lit a fire using a match stick.

Mr Njuguna's pleas to have his mother forgive him fell on deaf ears as she watched the flames consume her son.

According to area Assistant Chief Bernard Kagoto, the deceased has been terrorising his mother and has repeatedly assaulted her to the point of chasing her from her farm, a move that saw her rent a house at a nearby shopping centre.

“He had even forced her to vacate from her home to rent a house at the shopping centre. He then found the mother at the maize farm and attempted to rape her and when she resisted, he cut her hand twice using a panga,” Mr Kagoto said.

However, the administrator and community blamed the woman for her son’s indiscipline and involvement in criminal activities, saying she had always defended him when he committed crimes.

“The deceased had a record of criminal activities in this village but whenever he was apprehended, his mother has always been at his defence and could do everything to ensure that her son gets away with it. A time comes that when even your child is involved in criminal activities, you let justice take its course.

“It’s unfortunate that he has died while his mother will be left with a duty to bury him and at the same time nursing serious injuries inflicted by the deceased,” Mr Kagoto said.

The body was taken to Murang'a County mortuary for preservation.