Kenyan soldier shoots girlfriend dead, kills self

Emmanuel Walugu Onyango, a Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) soldier, has shot his girlfriend, Ms Immaculate Mwende Mwirigi, to death before turning the gun to himself.

The soldier whose military career timeline cannot be ascertained, was reported to have shot himself in the chin with an AK-47 rifle while dressed in full military combat.

This is after he had shot his girlfriend multiple times in what police believe to be a case of love gone sour.

The two bodies were found in an apartment in Nanyuki town where they reportedly lived together.

A resident of an apartment alerted police that she had heard gunshots near her neighbour’s house at around 9:30pm on Friday, October 7, 2022.

Laikipia County Criminal Investigation Officer (CCIO) Mr Onesmus Towett, who confirmed the incident on Friday, said police officers rushed to the scene but found the house door locked from the inside.

The officers were then forced to break into the house, where they found the two bodies lying on the floor. Immaculate was was already dead having been shot at close range.

They rushed Mr Onyango to Nanyuki Teaching and Referral Hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival.

“The officer was on duty just before the incident took place, he then went ahead and asked for permission to go for supper at 6pm during which he went to meet Ms Mwirigi,” said Mr Towett.

The motive of the incident is yet to be known. The bodies were moved to a local morgue pending probe.

A review of Immaculate’s social media shows that she had been dating the soldier probably from last year.

On his part, Emmanuel had made a post suggesting suicide way back in September of 2013, around the same time he had Osama bin Laden as his profile picture.