Kirinyaga man commits suicide after killing wife and 13-year-old son

The body of Jeremiah Muriuki was found dangling on a tree at a neighbour’s farm – while those of his wife Peris Wanjiku 42, and son Jackson Kinyua 13, were found in their house – lying in a pool of blood.

According to Muriuki's father Mzee Cyrus Mbutu said the incident had shocked the family.

“At first we thought he had only taken his life when we found his body in the fields, only to break into their house and find the bodies of his wife and son lying in a pool of blood,” said Mzee Mbutu.

It is believed that Muriuki killed his wife and son, a class seven pupil at a local primary school, locked their bodies inside the house, before committing suicide outside – nearly one kilometer away from their home.

Young Kinyua was a pupil at Kiandai primary school. His teachers led by Mr. Peterson Karuthai described him as a brilliant child.

“The boy was very bright. We came here as teachers to bring our condolences. This is very unfortunate,” said Mr. Karuthai – noting that the father was also a fiend of the school.

Maitharui Village in-charge Mr. John Muriuki said that Kinyua and his wife had been having domestic disagreements.

 “I can confirm that the woman had on several occasions sought refuge in Mwea. I remember the issue on the last case had something to do with a text message,” said the village leader.

Kirinyaga police commander Matthew Mang'ira confirmed the incident.

“The wife had a deep cut on her head, while the boy had a deep cut on his neck. We suspect the man used a knife to kill the boy, before using an axe to kill his wife,” said Officer Mang'ira.

 “We have recovered the weapon and our detectives are investigating the matter to establish what really happened,” Mang'ira said.

The three bodies were taken to Kibugi Funeral Home waiting postmortem.