A mother in Nakuru accepted a sponsorship offer for her daughter's education, only to discover that it was a ploy for exploitation.
When her daughter completed the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) in 2023, Rehema* feared her dream of secondary education would be dashed because she could not afford the fees.
A close friend from church approached her with news of a "good Samaritan" who was willing to not only pay her daughter's fees, but also provide school uniforms and other needs.
According to Rehema, the woman told her that the 'good Samaritan' had previously sponsored her own child's education, but since the child had completed KCSE, she wanted Rehema's daughter to take up the slot.
Given her humble background, Rehema, a resident of Salgaa town in Nakuru County, accepted the offer and the 'sponsor' paid for the whole year's fees.
On Friday, she expressed her happiness that her third-born child would continue her education without difficulty and enrol in a nearby day school in January 2024.
"I agreed because she was a member of our church and a friend. I just assumed that she was touched by my situation. Really, they did everything for my daughter and throughout the year she never lacked anything," she said.
But unbeknownst to her, the woman had ulterior motives.
The man who was paying the school fees was taking advantage of her 17-year-old daughter, resulting in her pregnancy.
In February 2025, Rehema noticed changes in her daughter's behaviour - she became withdrawn, often sick, and her body structure had changed. Despite Rehema's attempts to get her to open up, the girl remained silent.
"I knew something was wrong. I bought a pregnancy test kit, and to my shoc,k it was positive. I was heartbroken. I questioned her, but she said nothing. Later, she confided to her older sister that she was seven months pregnant and that the woman who had helped her secure the scholarship knew everything - even the man responsible," she recalls.
A devastated Rehema summoned the woman to her home to seek answers, but the woman threatened her, warning that the man was influential and would use his money to bribe his way out.
She also warned Rehema not to report the matter to the police or involve the church.
"I later learnt that the man responsible is the one who pays my daughter's school fees and is a respected elder in our church. True to their word, since I have nothing to fight for justice for my daughter, I just left everything to God," she said, breaking down in tears during the interview.
All seemed well until April 1 when her daughter went into labour. She was rushed to Rongai Sub-County Hospital but was referred to Nakuru Teaching and Referral Hospital.
On the way, Rehema called the woman who suggested she take the girl to a private hospital in Rongai Sub-County, where she gave birth to a baby boy.
The Form Two student was discharged on Wednesday, April 2, and accompanied by her mother and the woman, she went home.
However, tragedy struck when the woman sent Rehema Sh1,400 via M-Pesa, instructing her to go to the shop to buy food.
While she was at the shop, the woman called to say the baby had fallen ill and urged her to return home immediately.
Rehema arrived to find her grandson vomiting.
"She poisoned my two-day-old grandson. I found a pesticide container in her bag, which we handed over to the police. The baby died. His body was taken to the mortuary at Nakuru Teaching and Referral Hospital. We locked the woman in the house, and after neighbours responded to our distress calls, we called the police, who arrested her," she said.
The 17-year-old's mother told Nation.Africa that a month after the girl joined Form One, the woman contacted her mother and asked for permission to take the girl to town to buy school supplies.
Following instructions on where to meet, the girl was picked up by the woman on a motorbike.
They were later joined by a man she identified as Macharia - the one who paid her school fees.
They got into Macharia's car and drove to Nakuru town, where they checked into an apartment.
The man defiled her before taking her out for lunch and shopping, and threatened to kill her if she spoke about what had happened.
Three months later, the woman called again and they went to town as usual, but to a different apartment.
The man repeated the assault and bought her food.
The woman later sent her mother Sh2,500 for the trip, and the minor was given Sh500 as pocket money to keep her quiet.
"In June last year, she called again. The man did the same thing, but this time I got pregnant. When I told the woman, she told me to wait - maybe my menstruation was delayed. But I was pregnant. She told me not to tell anyone as she would take care of everything," the girl recalled.
On Friday, Rongai Sub-County Directorate of Criminal Investigations Officer Donnata Otieno said the suspect, Jennifer Makomore, was produced at Molo Court under a miscellaneous application and detectives were given 14 days to complete their investigations.
She appeared before Chief Magistrate Christine Mugo on Thursday, who ordered that she be remanded in custody at Rongai police station.
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