Catherine Mbene and her estranged husband Lukas Muthusi. The two were found dead inside a house at Kamweli village in Embu County.
Seven years after falling in love and building a life together, Catherine Mbene and Lukas Muthusi's relationship ended in unimaginable tragedy, turning what was meant to be a reconciliation into a fatal encounter.
On June 27, what was supposed to be a reconciliation meeting between the estranged couple turned tragic when Muthusi allegedly bludgeoned Mbene to death before taking his own life by ingesting a poisonous farm chemical.
Now, the two lovers will be buried more than 50 kilometres apart, their romance ending not with reconciliation but with violence, grief and unanswered questions.
Their love story began seven years ago in an Embu village where they fell in love and started a life together. Relatives who spoke to the Daily Nation revealed Mbene had a child from a previous relationship, but Muthusi assured her that this would not come between them.
According to the family members, their relationship, however, gradually became characterised by frequent quarrels and domestic violence. Two months ago, Mbene decided she had had enough, and she moved out and settled in her uncle's house in the same village, where she started a poultry business.
With his ego bruised by the separation, Muthusi, 32, allegedly hatched a deadly plan. When he invited Mbene to his home on June 27, 2026 for what he described as reconciliation talks, she agreed, unaware that she was walking into a trap that would cost her life.
That morning, the mother of one woke up eager to mend her relationship and left her usual routine of feeding her chickens.
But when she entered Muthusi's house, there was no room for reconciliation.
According to relatives, Muthusi accused her of leaving him for another man. He repeatedly hit her with an iron bar until she died. He then ingested a poisonous farm chemical in what police are treating as a murder-suicide.
Family members said Mbene had moved into a house owned by her uncle after leaving her husband's house because of persistent domestic violence.
Neighbours who responded to Mbene's distress calls found the two lying lifeless in the living room and alerted the police, who moved the bodies to the Our Lady of Lourdes Mwea Hospital mortuary.
A post-mortem revealed that Mbene had suffered a fractured skull, confirming that she had been attacked with a blunt object.
Her mother, Esther Kanini, told Daily Nation that on the day of the incident, she called Mbene at around 11 am to check on her.
“She did not answer my calls, and I became suspicious that something was wrong. I decided to go and check on her, only to be met by the devastating news. I was shocked to see the lifeless body of my daughter. Muthusi always called me 'mum ', and I never imagined he could kill my daughter,” she said.
Ms Kanini said her daughter's relationship with Muthusi had been troubled for years, marked by persistent conflict that ultimately drove the couple apart.
"At one point after she left his home, Muthusi ambushed and attacked her. Good Samaritans rescued her, and she escaped what was the first attempt on her life. My daughter had lost interest in him because he was violent. She had dreams and feared she would never achieve them if she stayed with him. That is why she left. Why she went back to him that day, I still don't know," she said.
The Ngurubani-based businesswoman described her daughter as a hardworking woman.
Mbene's close friend Triza Njeri said she was still struggling to come to terms with her death.
"We could not believe they were dead until we saw their bodies. On that day, she left her Grade Three daughter with me, saying she was going to the salon. She never returned. I do not know what to tell her daughter," she said.
Mbene's family said she will be buried on July 8, 2026 at her grandfather's home in Makutano, Kirinyaga County because Muthusi had not paid dowry.
Muthusi, meanwhile, was laid to rest on Monday, July 6, at Kamweri village in Embu County.
Embu County Police Commander Sarah Koki said officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations had taken over the case and were treating it as a murder-suicide.
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