A woman and her two daughters have been prosecuted for killing her husband who alleedly squandered Sh5,000 raised for their son’s burial.
Tabitha Weruma, 50, and her daughters Easter Kagendo, 28, and 24-year-old Emily Wanjira were arraigned before Embu resident judge Florence Muchemi. The mother was charged with murdering her husband and the daughters charged with manslaughter.
Weruma denied murdering Zackary Kiura Mutindi while the daughters pleaded guilty to unlawfully and unintentionally killing him on September 7 at Kathita village in Embu West subcounty.
The couple's son named only as Murimi had died prior from an explained cause and the family had raised Sh5,000 for burial.
Mutindi reportedly took the money and went on a three-day drinking spree. He returned at around 8pm totally drunk.
The wife demanded the money from the husband but he assaulted her. She called her daughters on phone from Gathoge in Kirinyaga county.
The court was told that the daughters arrived and the three demanded the money but Mutindi adamantly refused to give anything. They descended on him with blows until he died.
The mother was remanded pending hearing of the murder case on December 16 while the daughters were also remanded awaiting a probation report before sentencing.
Defence lawyer Kirimi Guantai said the sisters were very remorseful for killing their father and had not intended to do so.
He said the murder was the culmination of a toxic and dangerous environment during which they had lost their brother whom they wanted to give a decent burial.
Guantai said his clients unintentionally killed their father out of uncontrolled anger after he attacked their mother for asking for the funeral money.
He argued that they were not in their right frame of mind owing to their grief and their alcoholic and abusive father’s action. He urged the judge to forgive them as they have young children who depend on them.
