Couple arrested for caning nephew to death over maize theft

Detectives in Eldoret have arrested an uncle and aunt accused of jointly inflicting fatal punishment on their 19-year-old nephew, Kevin Kipkorir Meli, in a harrowing incident that unfolded in Kiplombe Location, Turbo sub-county in Uasin Gishu county.

Philip Kosgei and Tecla Chepchirchir are reported to have tied the young man to an avocado tree before subjecting him to a merciless beating with canes until he fell unconscious and ultimately lost his life.

According to a police report at Baharini police station in Turbo, the two had suspected Kevin of stealing and selling dry maize from his uncle’s home.

On the fateful day, the officers at Baharini police station received a distress call about a person who had been brutally beaten to death at Kaplelach village. After racing to the scene, they discovered the lifeless body of Kevin Kipkorir Meli, lying beneath an avocado tree at his uncle's homestead.

The young victim’s body bore multiple injuries on his head, back, legs, and hands, with a blood clot in his nose.

Detectives recovered a manila rope, used to secure the victim to the tree, and broken sticks, employed in the vicious assault, as crucial pieces of evidence right next to the tragic scene.

The body was then moved to Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH) morgue, as both suspects are currently in police custody, undergoing processing ahead of their arraignment.