A neighbour has narrated how a dispute over Ksh1,500 in unpaid rent turned fatal when a house agent attacked Maurice Otieno with a hammer, resulting in his death.
Addressing the media on November 14, Margaret Mutheu said the agent had initially visited Maurice Otieno Sande’s house to demand the outstanding rent.
However, he reportedly told him he did not have the money at the time but would send it later in the evening.
According to Mutheu, the agent was dissatisfied with the response, left the house and went to borrow a hammer before returning to attack the tenant.
“The agent went into the house and demanded the rent. The man told him he did not have the money at that moment but would send it in the evening. The agent walked out, borrowed a hammer and came back into the house, where he hit the man,” the neighbour recounted.
Ksh1,500 Rent Dispute Ends in Tenant’s Death in Kitengela
Another neighbour condemned the killing, questioning why anyone would take another person’s life over a rent debt, regardless of the amount involved.
She further questioned why the tenant was killed over the rent arrears, noting that the month was still ongoing and he had not yet reached the end of the rental period.
“Why would you kill someone over rent? Is Ksh1,500 worth taking a life? Ksh1500 is not worth killing someone,” the neighbour said.
Other residents called for restraint in handling rent-related disagreements, urging landlords and their agents to seek amicable solutions instead of resorting to violence when tenants cannot pay on time.
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Agent Arrested Over Tenant’s Hammer Killing in Kitengela
Following the incident, which happened on November 13, the suspect went to Kitengela Police Station, claiming that the deceased had assaulted and injured him.
However, officers arrested him as he was completing the process of obtaining a P3 medical examination form.
He is being held in police custody ahead of his expected appearance at the Kajiado Law Courts on Monday.
Detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) are expected to request more time to conclude their investigations.
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Meanwhile, the deceased’s body was taken to the Kitengela Level 4 Hospital mortuary, where it awaits a postmortem examination.
The Kitengela incident is not the first time a rent dispute has been linked to a fatal confrontation.
In May 2019, a tenant in Karagita Estate, Naivasha, reportedly stabbed his landlord to death after the latter visited his house to issue a notice to vacate over several months of unpaid rent.
The outstanding amount was reported to be between Ksh5,000 and Ksh6,000.
A month earlier, in April 2019, a separate incident was reported in Mpeli Village near Chwele Market in Bungoma County, where a tenant was found dead inside a house following a disagreement over Ksh500 in unpaid rent.
The incident sparked anger among local residents, who nearly lynched the landlady and her husband.
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