Police Officer Hacked To Death By Husband After Argument

A police officer attached to the Kiwanja Police Post in Kahawa West, Nairobi County was hacked to death by her husband on Friday, March 29 following an alleged altercation.

The incident occurred in Webuye, Bungoma County where the deceased, a 30-year-old police constable, who was off duty and her husband, a 40-year-old had travelled to attend the funeral of her late grandmother who was laid to rest at Misemwa village on Thursday, March 28.

It remains unclear the exact sequence of events leading to the officer's brutal murder but police reports stated an argument between the pair which escalated into the fatal attack.

"The deceased's body was found lying dead on the bed with several deep cuts on the neck and multiple injuries on the head, suspected to have been inflicted by a sharp object.

"A panga suspected to be the murder weapon was recovered from the scene," a police report documenting the incident reads in part.

The suspect had surrendered himself to the police following the incident.

Meanwhile, the deceased's body was moved to Lugulu Mission Hospital mortuary for storage pending postmortem.

This incident comes at the height of campaigns conducted against rising femicide and gender-based violence cases in the country.

Different stakeholders clamoured for the safety of women in the country while couples were advised on how to solve their cases amicably.

Femicide cases have been on the rise in 2024, with over 15 women murdered countrywide. Statistics amassed by Africa Data Hub reveal that in 75 per cent of cases, the femicide killings were committed by a person who knew the murdered woman - an intimate partner, relative or friend.

Nearly two-thirds of perpetrators were currently or had previously been in an intimate relationship with the victim, with husbands, and then boyfriends seen as the biggest culprits.

Husbands accounted for the most cases at 241 with boyfriends following at 130. Comparatively, in only about 15% of cases, the woman was killed by a stranger. 

"In most cases, the murder of a woman was committed due to a family quarrel. The reason for aggression on the part of a man towards a woman can be anything - any domestic issues or attempts by women to walk away from relationships.

"At the same time, men justify their actions by saying that they could not restrain themselves or were angry because the woman, in their opinion, did something wrong," stated Africa Data Hub in its report.