'He Was Mine Too': Kenyan Woman and Niece Fight over Late Husband's Estate

A 74-year-old woman and her 51-year-old niece are embroiled in a tussle over a multi-million-shilling estate left behind by her husband.

Appearing before a Nakuru court on Tuesday, Susan Nyambura accused her niece, Lucy Wanjiku, of eloping with her husband Joseph Leitmann, a German national.

Nyambura told the court that she adopted Wanjiku in the 1970s after learning that she could not bear children. Both claim they were legally married to Leitmann, who died in August 2001 at the age of 75.

Nyambura says she got married to the deceased in the 1960s under Kikuyu customary rites, while Wanjiku produced documents showing she got married to Leitmann on June 30th, 1995. Leitmann was 69 years old at the time whereas Wanjiku was 28.

Nyambura accuses her niece of disinheriting her of the property left behind by Leitmann. She told Nakuru High Court judge Hillary Chemitei that Wanjiku took advantage of her generosity to enter into a relationship with her husband.

“When Wanjiku joined high school, she started having an intimate relationship with my husband. I didn’t take the rumors seriously until she got married to my spouse,” Nyambura said.

“My spouse divorced me. I was, therefore, forced to vacate my matrimonial home. My niece, thereafter, moved in.”

She also told the court that Wanjiku later abandoned Leitmann and moved to the US, only to resurface after his death. She then forcefully took control of his wealth.

 “Leitmann apologized to me after Wanjiku left him. He and I were in the process of reuniting when he died,” Nyambura told the court.

“My efforts to reach out to my niece were met with threats, actual violence and I was forced to live in the servant’s quarters,” she testified.

Nyambura has asked the court to revoke letters of property administration granted to Wanjiku in 2016, saying she too was married to Leitmann and she played a part in the acquisition of his wealth. She also wants the court to stop Wanjiku from evicting her from the deceased’s estate.

Leitmann’s property included rental houses, 5,178 acres of land in Subukia, Nakuru, a hotel, motor vehicles, Nakuru residence, drilling equipment store, 2,000 shares in Ukingoni Farm Limited, among others. The property was valued at Sh100 million as of November 2001.

The hearing will continue on November 10th.

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