A two-year-old girl who survived the gruesome murder of her mother, Ann Gathoni and three of her siblings on Monday narrated the events before she was robbed of her family.
According to the toddler’s aunt, the two-year-old was found by a teacher who had come to their home seeking to find out why they had not reported to school that morning.
"One of the children’s teachers visited the home on Monday morning to find out why the child missed school.
"The teacher found the door open, and when she knocked, the two-year-old girl opened the door, telling her (the teacher) that her mother was still asleep," Gathoni’s sister, Nancy Wangari told reporters.
[caption caption="Row of single rooms in Maruirui where Ann Gathoni had rented a residence for her family"]
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Oblivious to what has happened to her family, the toddler narrated that her father came to their home on Sunday night and gave her french fries.
Further details of what transpired that night were pieced together by neighbours and people who last saw Ms Gathoni before she was murdered.
Witnesses who found the bodies relayed that Gathoni was lying on one of the two beds in the single room residence while two of her children, Dmitry Kibe (five) and Peris Mumbi (eight) were lying on their backs on the other bed, foaming at the mouth.
Police suspect that 13-year-old Mary Wairimu, Gathoni’s second born, was raped by her mother’s lover before she died.
"She was kneeling on the floor, and her hands had been tied behind her back with a rope. Her face was facing sideways," a neighbour conveyed.
All three children are believed to have been sired by different men with the murder suspect – only known as Maina – having fathered the survivor.
[caption caption="Ann Gathoni, woman murdered in Maruirui village with her three children"]
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The deceased's sister revealed that the family did not know Maina well even though he had been Gathoni's husband for five years.
Wangari explained that her sister had been married before to a man in Dandora, Nairobi, with whom she had a daughter - now 18 years old. The daughter was not living with Gathoni at the time of the murders.
Neighbours described the night of the brutal attacks stating that they had heard noises coming from the house but ignored them.
"He often came here from time to time, but we did not bother to know more about him," one of the neighbours noted adding that they often had arguments, "I tried to advise her some time ago, but I did not insist because I felt I would be intruding," Pastor Ibrahim Mbugua narrated.
"I was with Musoo (Gathoni) at the bar last night, and she was jovial as usual. I remember hearing some patrons saying that one of her tenants had just paid her Sh3,000, so she had money to spend.
"Musoo was a very good woman. She was hardworking and independent. She always made sure she provided for her children and usually bought her own drinks," Joe Mburu who was at the crime scene narrated.
The family is yet to receive a comprehensive police report on the matter even as police hunt for the man suspected to have carried out the crime.
