Police launched a manhunt for a 48-year-old man accused of setting his mother’s house on fire, killing a one-and-a-half-year-old child in Kisii County.
The incident occurred on Wednesday evening in Nyangeni Village, Nyabiosi Sub-location, Taracha Location, within Kisii Central Sub-County.
According to police, the fire was reported prompting officers to respond.
Preliminary investigations indicate that at around 7pm, the suspect allegedly set fire to a semi-permanent house occupied by his mother.
The inferno completely destroyed the house, trapping and killing a one-year-and-six-month-old child.
The child’s body was burnt beyond recognition, while all property in the house was destroyed.
Crime scene investigators processed, photographed and documented the scene before the child’s remains were moved to the Kisii Teaching and Referral Hospital mortuary, where they are awaiting a post-mortem examination.
The suspect fled after the incident and remains at large.
Police have launched investigations to establish the motive for the alleged arson and murder as efforts to trace and arrest the suspect continue.
And police in Busia County launched investigations after the body of an unidentified five-year-old girl was found dumped in a thicket in Teso North Sub-County.
The body was discovered at around 5.30pm on Wednesday in Kawalun Village, Chamasir Sub-location.
Preliminary investigations established that the child’s body had been abandoned in the thicket by unknown persons at an unknown time.
She was fully dressed, with blood oozing from her mouth and a visible swelling at the back of her head.
Police suspect the girl may have been fatally struck with a blunt object before her body was dumped at the scene. Investigators also believe the killing could have occurred elsewhere before the body was abandoned in the thicket.
Residents in the village were unable to identify the child or provide information about her identity.
Crime scene investigators processed and documented the scene before the body was moved to Kocholia Sub-County Mortuary, where it is awaiting identification and a post-mortem examination.
Police have opened a murder investigation and are pursuing leads to establish the identity of the child and those responsible for her death. Further investigations are ongoing.
READ ALSO;