Two suspects arrested after female teacher killed, body burnt in Kitui

Two suspects have been arrested and arraigned over the brutal murder of a middle-aged female teacher in Mutitu, Kitui County.

Wambua Mwangangi and Chris Kyalo Muli are suspected to have been part of a mob that killed and lynched Daisy Mbathe, a teacher at Ndooni Primary School on January 6, 2020.

The mob, which reportedly comprised of parents of the school in which the slain teacher worked, is alleged to have perpetrated the crime over the school’s poor performance in last year’s KCPE.

Kitui Resident Magistrate Felistus Nekesa granted an application by Mutito criminal detectives to detain the suspects at Mutitu Police Station for 21 days pending conclusion of investigations into the murder.

Kitui KNUT Branch Executive Secretary Simon Nding’o condemned the incident which he termed as a serious threat to the entire Kitui teaching fraternity.

He also lauded the DCI for acting swiftly on the matter, urging them to leave no stone unturned in the hunt for the suspects.

The school has since been closed.

Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) Secretary General Wilson Sossion, in a statement to newsrooms on Wednesday, castigated the parents, accusing them of being behind the incident.

“For unknown reasons, parents invaded the school, evicted the teacher, and later ambushed her while she was taking her children to school, killing her instantly, and setting her body aflame,” said Sossion.