This archive report was first published on 29 July 2019.
On a fateful Sunday evening, July 28, 2019, a tragic incident unfolded in Chepkoin village, Belgut Constituency, leaving a family in shock and grief. A 15-year-old boy, in a fit of rage, stabbed his 50-year-old stepfather to death over a plate of food for supper.
According to Belgut Officer Commanding Police Division (OCPD) Phillip Okello, the minor fled the scene and attempted to take his own life in an attempt to evade arrest. Okello stated that around 10 pm, the deceased, Joel Kipngetich, picked a quarrel with his stepson over supper, prompting the angry minor to pick a machete and fatally slash the old man in the chest.
When neighbours arrived at the scene, they found the deceased lying in a pool of blood inside his compound. The juvenile murder suspect, a standard six pupil, was arrested hours later in a nearby village where he had fled to and ingested an acaricide in an attempt to commit suicide.
Okello revealed that the minor was rushed to Sosiot hospital, treated, and discharged in the morning. He is currently in police custody awaiting arraignment in court. The body of the deceased was moved to Kericho county hospital to await postmortem and burial arrangements.
