A woman escaped lynching after a witchdoctor blamed her for the loss of a neighbour’s child in Kanga area, Rongo subcounty.
Peter Otieno and his wife on Thursday morning sought the witchdoctor from Tanzania to help locate their five month-old baby who went missing a month ago.
The witchdoctor told the couple that their neighbour, Sara Awino, was responsible for a number of children's disappearances, including theirs.
Awino was ferrying the children to her ancestral home in Muhuru Bay, Nyatike subcounty, the witchdoctor claimed.
“The couple called villagers who started to lynch Awino and threatened to burn down her house if she didn’t produce the missing child,” chief George Omuono said.
Omuono said he called police who rescued the woman from the mob, adding the witchdoctor went into hiding. Awino suffered physical injuries.
“The matter was reported to my office and we forwarded it to police officers who are still investigating it. The government does not employ the use of witchcraft in its investigations,” he said.
Rongo police boss Jonathan Muganda said he advised the neighbours to solve the matter through a public baraza with the help of village elders.
“We cannot rely on evidence submitted by a witchdoctor. We have launched a manhunt for him [the witchdoctor] to face charges of incitement and creating tension,” he said.