April 22, 2019 is a day Miriam Muthoni Kariuki will live to remember.
Muthoni hails from Kambakia village in Meru County but fell in love with a Nyeri man who lived in Othaya, Peter Kinyua Maina. She left her Meru home for Chinga in Othaya where she got married in 2012.
She was a young woman when she delivered her first born, a girl and later a boy. Maina was at the time a young man only 21 years old but loved his family, lawyer Wahome Thuku narrates.
“On 21st April 2019 at 10am Muthoni was called by Kinyua’s sister Patricia Wairimu, who informed her that her son was sick,” Thuku narrated adding “Patricia called her again and informed her it was an emergency that she should travel to see her child.”
She left Chinga for Sagana and arrived at 7 pm and procured drugs for her son from a pharmacy in the area.
Muthoni spent the night at her mother-in-law’s house and asked to leave the following day but Kinyua asked her to stay
“Muthoni waited for them to return but at around 12 noon she decided to leave. She dressed up and as she was leaving the house she met Kinyua at the door. Muthoni informed him that she was leaving for Sagana and would return the following week.
“The accused immediately held her by the neck and hit her using the flat side of a panga on the right side of her neck. All the buttons on her shirt came off. She fell down, lying on her stomach. She then could hear the voice of Patricia and Kinyua’s uncle Kariuki.
“Kinyua’s mother who was also present hit her on the head. She was also kicked but could not tell the person kicking her. Her son witnessed the attack.”
She would pass out and was found at the roadside by strangers.
“The husband Kinyua came to the scene armed with a panga and the people ran away. He started pulling her by her leg back to the homestead saying he thought she had died. Other members of the public intervened and rescued her. They took her to Chinga Police station, then to Gichichie dispensary.”
Muthoni was referred to Kenyatta National Hospital but was left with a broken spone. Today, she is paralyzed and cannot move.
Kinyua was arrested, charged and convicted for attempted murder and jailed for 50 years in prison in January 2021.
His appeal was also thrown out as the Nyeri High Court upheld the lower court ruling.
Her two kids live with their mother in Meru and is also take care of by villagers at their Meru home.
Muthoni and her children moved back to Meru where her mother took over as the care giver.
Villagers are fundraising to build her a two-bedroomed house. By Monday morning, Muthoni’s friends had raised Ksh125,21 and they are hoping to raise Ksh700,000 to ensure that Miriam is well settled in a good house.
You can contribute via her PayBill number 89130 Account: 46216.
