Intruder dies in Gatundu North house fire

Detectives in Kiambu County are investigating an arson incident in which a suspected intruder died after setting a house on fire in Gakoe Village.

Police said the incident occurred on March 12. A complainant told officers that she was at her semi-permanent timber house when she discovered that one of the bedroom walls had been broken into earlier by an unknown person.

She immediately called a neighbour who helped her repair the damaged wall. After preparing supper, she decided to take her 6-kilogram gas cylinder into the bedroom for safekeeping.

It was at that moment that she noticed a man hiding under her bed. The elderly woman ran outside and raised an alarm, prompting neighbours to rush to the scene and surround the house.

Police said the suspect, realising he could not escape, intentionally released gas from the cylinder and struck a match while inside the bedroom, igniting a fire.

The man sustained severe burns to his face, hands and upper abdomen and died at the scene. Part of the house and several household items were also destroyed in the fire.

The body of the unknown middle-aged man was moved to General Kago Mortuary for preservation pending identification and a postmortem examination.

Elsewhere, police in Murang’a County are investigating the death of a 47-year-old man who fell from a railway bridge in the Wathiani area on Thursday night.

The incident occurred on March 12, 2026, at around 10:00 p.m. at a railway bridge in Wathiani. The deceased was identified as Patrick Karuri Ng’ang’a. He was heading home when the accident happened.

Preliminary investigations indicate that Ng’ang’a was attempting to cross from one side of the valley to the other using a railway bridge built across the valley.

Due to darkness, he reportedly misjudged the distance between the railway sleepers, lost his balance, and fell between the rails into the valley below. He landed on a hard surface and died.

The body was later moved to Murang’a Level 5 Hospital Mortuary, where it is being preserved pending a postmortem examination.

Police in Laikipia County are also investigating the death of a three-week-old baby allegedly injured during a family dispute in Kilimo Area on March 12, 2026.

A parent said he had visited his siblings and learned from neighbours that his sister had lost her three-week-old child under unclear circumstances. Police established that the deceased suffered fatal injuries following a fight between the infant’s uncle and aunt.

During the scuffle, the minor was reportedly struck by one of the parents, causing nose bleeding and loss of consciousness. She was rushed to Nanyuki Teaching and Referral Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

Preliminary investigations indicate that all four adults allegedly colluded to conceal the circumstances leading to the child’s death.

Police have arrested and detained the four suspects for interrogation and further action.