On Monday when she should have been reporting to school for the second term, seven-year-old Valentine Chepkoech was instead being lowered into the ground beside her little sister, 1.5-year-old Miriam Chepngetich, in Sogoet village, Bomet County.
They died on the same day on April 12, murdered in cold blood as their throats were slit – reportedly by the one person who should have protected them.
Their small, similar coffins lay side by side during a tearful funeral ceremony as mourners struggled to come to terms with the tragedy.
No photographs, framed images or school portraits of the sisters were displayed at the service. What remained were memories of oral recollections shared by relatives, neighbours, teachers and local administrators.
The girls’ father, Geoffrey Kipkemoi Kirui, has since been arrested and remains in custody as investigations into the murder continue. He was arraigned in court but is yet to take a plea, pending the release of a medical report assessing his mental condition.
Coffins containing the bodies of two slain sisters are carried to the burial site in Teganda village, Bomet Central on April 28, 2025.
Photo credit: Vitalis Kimutai | Nation
The killing has left the community in shock, triggering emotional reactions and condemnation from residents and local leaders.
“The children were innocent souls who should have been protected. They did not commit any crime to deserve such a cruel death,” said Mr John Tanui, the assistant chief of Teganda sub-location.
He urged community members to stop shielding offenders and instead report them to law enforcement to avoid similar tragedies.
Ms Lenah Chelangat, a teacher at Tachasis Early Childhood Development Education (ECDE), said Valentine was a cheerful and respectful child who stood out among her peers.
“She was very keen on her education and was an inquisitive child who loved to learn new things. She did not like being assisted to write in her books, as she preferred copying what was on the blackboard and handing it over to be marked.”
Their mother, Ms Sisco Chepkirui, who works as a casual tea picker, was initially arrested but later released. She was inconsolable at the funeral, unable to speak as her surviving son clung tightly to her, unaware of the gravity of the loss.
On the day of the murder, both parents reportedly went drinking separately.
Kirui is said to have returned home at their Tachasis village earlier in the evening before heading back out to join his wife at a local bar. Witnesses said an altercation occurred between them before they parted ways again.
The house in which two children were killed in Konoin, Bomet County in this photo taken on April 12, 2024.
Photo credit: Vitalis Kimutai | Nation
Sometime later, Kirui allegedly went to his parents’ home and told them he had found the two girls lying lifeless in the kitchen, blood pouring from knife wounds on their necks.
A local administrator was alerted and informed the police who arrived at the scene and moved the bodies to Kapkatet Sub-county Hospital mortuary in neighbouring Kericho County.
Bomet County Police Commander Edward Imbwaga confirmed that Kirui was arrested and that a kitchen knife believed to be the murder weapon was recovered from the scene.
Authorities said the two children had been living with their grandparents due to neglect from the parents who often left them behind while taking up casual labour jobs in nearby tea farms.
On the evening of the incident, the girls reportedly had supper at their grandparents’ house and decided to return to their parents' home, a short distance away, to sleep. That was the last time they were seen alive.
The youngest sibling, a boy, remained at their grandparents’ house that night and was unharmed.
The mother’s movements on the night of the killings remain unclear and although she was initially arrested, police released her after she recorded her statement. Her release has drawn mixed reactions with some residents calling for thorough investigations to establish if she played any role in the killings.
Cases of child murders stemming from domestic conflicts have been on the rise in Bomet with calls to couples to seek counselling whenever they have relationship differences.
In February, Bomet High Court Judge Julius Kipkosgei sentenced Bernard Kirui to 150 years in prison for strangling to death his three sons in Magutek village, Bomet County.
