Mwingi: Man, 23, hangs himself a month after his motorbike was stolen

A 23-year-old man from Mwingi town has committed suicide by hanging allegedly because of stress caused by the theft of his motorbike.

Nicholas Nzau, a hawker, committed the act inside the bathroom of his rented house on Monday evening.

Ruth Mwikali, his wife, said she had left him with their four-month-old daughter and went to work.

She returned home and found the door of their house locked from inside.

Attempts to reach out to the husband on phone were futile as calls went unanswered.

Ruth moved around several places where her husband was fond of spending time but could not find him.

She decided to break the door to the house and that is when she discovered that her husband had taken his life.

Their baby was found on the bed crying.

"My husband’s motorbike was stolen a month ago and he has been very stressed as he used it in his hawking business.

"He stopped going to work. He used it to hawk jua kali items. I used to leave him with our daughter in order to keep him busy and forget the frustrations he was going through," she narrated.

Nzau is said to have bought the motorbike at Ksh.140,000 and could not come to terms with its disappearance.

"I used to encourage him not to worry as he would bounce back economically because he was a very hardworking man," Ruth added.

Upon the discovery of the husband's body, Ruth alerted her neighbours, relatives and rushed to Mwingi police station to report the tragedy.

Francis Muthiani, the deceased brother, said his brother was so stressed after the motorbike was stolen.

"We talked around 12 noon on Monday and he told me he wanted to sleep as he had been experiencing lack of sleep at night. He promised to call back later in the evening only to be informed about his sudden death by his wife," he said.

Miriam Nzyoki, a neighbour described Nicholas as a very calm and reserved person.

She also said most of the time he stayed in the house together with his children.

He is survived by a wife and two children. The eldest is 3-years-old.

His body was moved to Mwingi Level 4 Hospital Mortuary by police officers.