A 30-year-old man killed his mother by locking her in a burning house after his attempt to kill his brother failed.

The incident happened at Magwero Village in Masaba North, Nyamira County on Monday night.

County Commissioner Amos Mariba said the man had set ablaze his own house and that of his brother, who escaped.

It was reported that the man ran amok, torching houses in the compound and that he had started with his brother’s before he also razed his own.

Torched two houses

Mr Mariba said the man identified as Jared Masanya had torched the two houses at around 10pm on Monday and neighbours had responded to stop the fire, but were overwhelmed since it had spread and consumed the properties.

The suspect is said to have forced his mother into his burning house and locked her inside.

“His mother had rushed to salvage the suspect’s house but in the process, he grabbed her and threw her inside and locked the exit door from outside. She burnt beyond recognition,” Mariba said.

The motive of the attack is yet to be established, according to the Commissioner. “The suspect is on the run,” the administrator added.

This is the second incident of elderly women being caught in the middle of unfortunate incidents in the same area this week.

In another incident, Mariba said, Alice Kemunto Omwenga’s two houses were torched by a group of 10 people well known to her, with all her belongings and property worth approximately Sh5 million being consumed in the inferno at Riakworo Village.

She was, however, unhurt since she was not at home at the time of the incident.

On Sunday evening, another woman from Nyamarambe village narrowly escaped from a lynch mob after people known to her set her house ablaze while she was inside with her grandson.