Irate members of the public lunched and set ablaze a 64-year-old man moments after he reportedly hacked his wife to the death in Ndumbu village in Kisau location in Mbooni East Sub-county on Sunday morning.
The deceased woman Ruth Kavisi Mutua (61) succumbed to cuts on the neck, legs and arms by her husband identified as Boniface Mutua Kitunguu following a misunderstanding over land issue.
The woman raised alarm that attracted villagers to the scene only to realize that her husband had escaped after committing the heinous act.
Residents mobilized a search and tracked down the husband in neighbouring Lungu village where they beat him up before set him on fire.
Preliminary reports into the incident indicated that a family meeting was held last Sunday to resolve the dispute only for matters to turn tragic after other family members travelled back to Nairobi assuming that the issue was settled.
“The assailant tried to escape after committing the heinous act but members oif the public caught up with him and set him ablaze,” said Makueni County Police Commander Joseph Ole Naipeyan while speaking to KNA on the telephone on Sunday.
The police have recovered the weapon used to kill the woman while the bodies of the couples were taken to Machakos County Referral Hospital mortuary for preservation awaiting autopsy.
By Patrick Nyakundi
