A 19-year-old woman abandoned by a man she met on Facebook during their first date in Meru has returned to her home in Nakuru County after public pressure compelled the man to cover her travel costs.
The woman, who had two children, spent two weeks at Kiutine market in Meru after the 40-year-old miraa farmer she met online fled following their initial encounter. She departed Meru on Thursday morning and arrived in Nakuru County that evening after the man relented and provided the funds.
An emissary delivered Sh1,300 to a local elder to facilitate her return, with additional support from community members. Area assistant chief Mr. Gitonga Mucheke confirmed that the man’s home was raided by locals who seized his motorcycle to pressure him into paying the fare.
The woman, who left school after becoming pregnant at 16, had expressed interest in establishing a business at the market near Meru National Park if a benefactor emerged. She also plans to resume her education.
She arrived at the market two weeks prior at the invitation of a man she claimed had been communicating with her via text and calls. The man abandoned her after she insisted on an HIV test before sexual activity, according to her account.
The woman alleged the man had initially contacted her by mistake. "We started chatting when I was pregnant with my second child, and I told him, but he said it was fine," she stated to Nation.co.ke.
The man had previously sent Sh1,300 for her bus fare to Meru. She later discovered he was significantly older than claimed and was married, leading to the relationship’s collapse.
He reportedly demanded she reimburse him Sh1,300 for the fare and an additional Sh500 for lodging. "He said he was 28 and unmarried, and we couldn’t go to his house because it was wet from mopping," she recounted. "I later learned he was over 40 and married."
Village elder Mr. Julius Kithinji offered temporary shelter to the woman and her children.
