Kenyan Family of 5 Found Dead in Their House in Githurai 45

Five members of a family including a couple and their children were on Saturday morning found dead in their house in Guthurai 45, Kiambu County.

Their lifeless bodies were discovered after neighbors became suspicious having not seen any of them leaving the house in the morning as usual.

Ruiru Sub-County police commander Phineas Lingera said the family is suspected to have succumbed to carbon monoxide poisoning.

The deceased include 32-year-old Jacob Karumba, his wife Doris, and three children aged eight, six, and three months old.

Lingera said a jiko whose contents were dry was found in the poorly ventilated single-roomed house.

It is suspected that Karumba and his family inhaled carbon monoxide emitted by burning charcoal from the jiko.

“We believe he overslept and forgot to put out the fire. The family may have died of suffocation after inhaling carbon monoxide,” Lingera said.

Neighbors said Karumba, who sells boiled maize in Guthurai, was seen preparing his stock outside his house on Friday evening but went inside with the charcoal jiko after it started raining.

The bodies of the deceased were taken to City Mortuary as further investigations to establish the cause of their death continue.