Two elderly women burnt to death over suspicion of witchcraft

Two elderly women have been lynched and eight houses set ablaze in Omokonge Village, Nyamira County over allegations of dabbling in witchcraft.

An irate mob impounded Pauline Marinda Mogambi (95) and her daughter Rose Mogambi (53) and burned them to ashes accusing them of being in possession of witchcraft paraphernalia.

Trouble is said to have begun on Saturday morning when members of the public claimed they found a book containing a list of names of deceased persons and others supposedly earmarked for death.

Ayunga Mogambi, son of the deceased, who also narrowly escaped the ordeal told Citizen Digital that a group of rowdy armed men attacked their home demanding a book bearing a list of names of people who died in the past after being allegedly bewitched by his mother and sister.

Ayunga was forced to helplessly watch as his elderly mother and sister murdered in cold blood.

Police, who came to the rescue of suspected witches, were compelled to shoot in the air to disperse the mob who engaged in running battles for the better part of Saturday evening.

While confirming the incident, Nyamira OCPD Rico Ngare warned members of the public against taking the law into their own hands, adding that police have been deployed to restore peace and order in the area.

Area residents, who are now living in fear of being attacked, have called on the government to apprehend the perpetrators of the heinous act and beef up security.

The area assistant chief, Joseph Kinara, has appealed to the residents to maintain calm as police investigate the horrendous incident.

Reported by Dismus Nabiswa