A 13-Year-Old Standard Four pupil on Sunday evening committed suicide after a quarrel over sh100 he had won in a gamble.
The minor, from Chumani village in Kilifi County, hanged himself inside his room following the quarrel with his uncle.
The deceased, Evans Kadenge, a pupil at Kararacha Primary School picked a quarrel with his uncle only identified Peter, 15, over a gambling card game.
According to reports, the uncle declined to give the deceased Sh100 which he had won in a gamble three days earlier.
Kilifi OCPD Alexander Makau and Kilifi North Deputy County Commissioner Selina Maitha confirmed the incident.
The OCPD said they have started an investigation over the death and they have already summoned the uncle for interrogation.
“We shall question him so that he can shed more light on what happened, and leading to the death of the boy. His statement will assist with our investigations because we strongly believe he has enough information concerning that death,” he said.
He said the body of the deceased was moved to the Kilifi County Hospital Mortuary.
The DCC noted that the government will hold public participation and community sensitization barazas following the increase in gambling and other illegal games in the area.
“We have our detectives on the ground to ascertain what exactly happened. This is too much. We believe there is something more which needs to be unearthed over that death. It is very sad,” said Ms Maitha.
“We shall carry out barazas beginning this week to sensitize our people on these new dangers. Our investigation team will also carry out crackdown on illegal gambling that is quickly taking root to make sure that they are eradicated out of the county,” she added.
The incident comes only a month after a nine-year-old boy also committed suicide after losing a gamble in Mtondia.
The late Silas Kazungu, then a class two pupil at Mtondia Primary School hanged himself in their bedroom after losing a gamble.
The boy was gambling using cashew nuts, in a game that whoever wins takes all the cashew nuts the other boys had.
He lost to the other players prompting him to leave the game crying in anger only for him to kill himself some minutes later.
