A 35-year-old housewife was on Tuesday evening stabbed to death by his 21-year-old cousin following a disagreement at their home in Mutanda location in the Mwingi North Constituency of Kitui county.
The assailant later took his own life by stabbing himself in the stomach.
The Mumoni subcounty police commander, Paul Saitoti, said the woman was stabbed several times in the chest, and the assailant also turned the knife on himself.
Saitoti said it was not clear what provoked the altercation that led to the 4.30 pm tragedy, as the person who had responded to the cry of help found the two laying in a pool of blood.
“The person who reported the incident arrived too late because efforts to rush them to Mwingi Level IV hospital about 50m kilometers away bore no fruit as they were pronounced dead on arrival," Saitoti said.
The bodies of the two were taken to the Mwingi Level IV hospital morgue for preservation as the police launched investigations.
Saitoti said the husband of the woman was in a state of shock and would not give any coherent information about what he knew about the relationship between his wife and the cousin.
The assistant chief for Wanguutu sub-location where the incident took place, Joel Musyoka, condemned the incident.
Speaking on phone Musyoki said it was prudent for residents to seek the help of the authorities, elders, or church leaders whenever differences arose instead of resorting to attacking those who offend them.
He said stern action would be taken against people who resort to attacking fellow residents whenever petty differences arise while there are amicable ways of dealing with such matters.
