Kenyan Wife of Slain Mombasa-Based Dutch Tycoon Herman Rouwenhorst Arrested

Riziki Cherono, the widow of slain Mombasa-based Dutch tycoon Herman Rouwenhorst has been arrested.

Cherono was apprehended by homicide detectives on Thursday morning on suspicion of taking part in his murder.

Coast Regional Police Commander Paul Ndambuki said she will be arraigned in court to face murder charges.

Her arrest comes days after Rouwenhorst’s children, aged 14 and 12, told detectives that their mother helped his suspected killers gain access into their Bamburi home on the night he was murdered.

In their statements to homicide detectives, the teenagers said their mother led three strangers into their father’s bedroom and a commotion ensued.

“Our father kept on screaming for help, as we prepared to go to their bedroom, we realized that our bedroom door had been locked from outside and we could not leave the room,” one of the children said.

Cherono later accompanied the strangers out of the apartment, according to the children’s account.

The minors further revealed that their slain father had initiated a divorce from their mother a few months before his death, but Cherono was against the move.

“My parents were often fighting, and my dad had decided to end the 13-year-old marriage, he told us that he would no longer be living with my mother, but he would continue to take care of us,” part of their statement read.

Rouwenhorst, 55, was found lying lifeless on their bed on June 4th with his hands and legs tied using a rope, and mouth gagged.

The foreigner reportedly emigrated to Kenya after falling in love with Cherono during a holiday. The couple had two children together. 

The deceased also had three children in the Netherlands from a previous relationship.

Rouwenhorst, who hailed from Apeldoorn, owned multiple nightclubs and properties in Mombasa and Kilifi counties.