Police officer kills husband in cold blood over domestic quarrel

Police officer in custody after shooting husband 12 times in domestic dispute. [Standard, file]

A female police officer who shot her husband 12 times at their home in Eldoret has been arrested and is facing murder charges.

The incident happened on Sunday morning, when the officer, who was on night duty, returned to their house in the Ainabtich area, Kimumu estate, and had a heated argument with her husband.

The officer, identified as Constable Lilian Biwott, is attached to the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KBS) Eldoret branch.

She is alleged to have used her official AK-47 rifle to shoot her husband, Edwin Kipchumba, in the chest and head, in front of their three children.

Uasin Gishu County Police Commander Benjamin Mwande and County Criminal Investigations Officer (CCIO) Benjamin Muleli confirmed the incident, saying that the suspect surrendered herself at Eldoret Central Police Station after the shooting.

Mwande said that the officer reported on night duty on Sunday and later rushed back to her house where she had a quarrel with her spouse.

"The information we have is that the officer used her official gun which she had been assigned for the official night duties to shoot at her husband in the presence of their three children at their house situated along the Eldoret-Iten road," he said.

Mwande added that the couple had been having marital problems and that the officer acted out of anger.

"It is unfortunate to kill a young man who is said to be around 36 years old and 32 but it is true the constable is in police custody where she is being interrogated for further details and later charged in a court of law," he said.

Muleli said that his officers are on the ground and that they have launched investigations, gathering more information from the neighbours.

He said that the suspect claimed that she acted in self-defence after her husband tried to stab her with a knife.

"We heard that at around 17.30 am the accused person had a quarrel with his husband at their rented house in Kimumu in Chepkoilel location about 3 kilometres from the town. Through our investigations, the accused alleged that she went back to check on her children in their said rented house and her husband turned to her with a knife wanting to stab her but due to self-defence she shot him to death," Muleli said.

He added that when the officers arrived at the scene, they found the deceased lying on his bed facing downwards on a pool of blood with several bullet wounds.

The police recovered an AK-47 rifle with 11 cartridges and 3 bullets at the scene.

The body of the deceased was taken to Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH) in Eldoret for preservation before postmortem examination.