Police in Laikipia have opened investigations into the gruesome death of a university student who was reportedly stabbed to death by her estranged boyfriend on Wednesday.
The victim, only identified as Mercy, was a first-year student at Laikipia University.
Witnesses at the girl’s hostel in Karuga village, Nyahururu Sub County said the suspect had been frequenting her house in the recent past before they parted ways.
The neighbours said the couple constantly quarreled when they were together.
On Wednesday, the same neighbours said they heard screams coming from the girl’s hostel.
The suspect is said to have broken into her house and attacked her. The witnesses who responded found the suspect had locked himself inside the house.
Upon breaking down the door, they found the girl on the ground writhing in pain.
The suspect had also tried to take his own life, stabbing himself in the neck and abdomen.
One witness named Amos Kinuthia said well-wishers tried to rush the student to the hospital but she succumbed to the stab wounds along the way.
“We found the girl who was unconscious and rushed her to hospital but she died on the way,” Kinuthia said.
“Everything happened very fast, and we were not able to save her despite our efforts,” said another Laikipia University student, James Kimaiga.
An irate mob pounced on the suspect but police officers responded in time to save him. They also rushed the suspect to Nyahururu County Referral hospital where he is reported to be in stable condition.
The body of the deceased was moved to Hospital’s morgue.
The caretaker of the hostel said the suspect had been banned from accessing the rooms after a lady who is a friend to the deceased reported that the man had tried to force himself on her.
The said incident forced the girlfriend to cut off communications with the suspect, a move police believe led to the murder.
