The rising tide of gender-based violence has claimed another victim in Kenya, with a chilling new case emerging just days after Ugandan Olympian Rebecca Cheptegei succumbed to burn injuries allegedly inflicted by her partner.....CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE>>>
Nelly Wanjiku, a 29-year-old woman from Kiambu County, is now nursing severe burns after her boyfriend poured boiling water on her face, a violent act that has left her traumatised and fighting for recovery.
Wanjiku’s ordeal began on the night of August 29, 2024, when her partner, who we have chosen to withhold the name, unleashed a brutal attack that has shocked her community.
According to Nelly, the incident occurred during what seemed like a routine evening. Her partner complained of hunger, and as she warmed food for him, he turned on her with terrifying cruelty.
“He said he was hungry. I started warming his food. But before I was done, he said he was thirsty and started warming water to drink. Before I knew it, he was facing me with the kettle open, and suddenly, he poured the boiling water on me,” Wanjiku recalled, still visibly shaken by the memory.
The attack escalated quickly, and as her skin burned, Nelly’s maternal instincts kicked in. She immediately ran to her baby’s nanny, urging her to take the child and flee from the house.
“I told her to take my daughter and run away. He wasn’t finished with me yet,” she narrated. Left alone with her attacker, Wanjiku described the horror of being followed by the boyfriend, his hands in his pockets, his expression cold and emotionless.
“It felt like a horror movie. He was tormenting me, just following me. I had no idea what he would do next,” she recounted.
Neighbors, alerted by her screams, rushed her to the hospital, where she has been undergoing treatment for the burns inflicted during the attack. However, her assailant, took advantage of the chaos to flee the scene and remains on the run. Police are actively searching for him, and the public has been asked to provide any information that might lead to his capture.
For Wanjiku, the physical pain has been overwhelming, but the emotional scars cut deeper. She believes the attack was rooted in her decision to put her career first, declining her boyfriend’s push to move in together. “He wanted us to live together, but I wasn’t ready, and neither was he. I helped him set up a business, but I needed to focus on growing my career. That’s when things started falling apart,” she explained.
The whereabouts of the boyfriend remain unknown, and Wanjiku has expressed a profound sense of unease, knowing her attacker is still at large. “Every time I felt pain, I prayed for justice, that this suffering would not be in vain, that he would be caught,” she asserted.
The police report has been filed at the local police station under OB number 03/29/08/2024, and authorities are urging anyone with information on his whereabouts to come forward.
The incident has reignited the conversation on gender-based violence in Kenya, coming on the heels of the tragic death of Olympian Rebecca Cheptegei, who died after being doused in petrol and set alight by her partner.
According to the Africa Data Hub, at least 500 women have fallen victim to femicide in Kenya between 2016 and 2023, with cases of gender-related killings rising across the continent. The United Nations estimates that 20,000 women were killed in Africa in 2022 alone, with the actual number likely higher due to underreporting.
As Nelly fights to heal, both physically and emotionally, she is now part of a grim statistic, a growing number of women in Kenya whose lives have been irreparably damaged by gender-based violence. “Today, I can see that God has helped me a lot. I’m beginning to feel like myself again, but I know this journey is far from over,” she shared….CLICK HERE FOR MORE ARTICLE>>>
