A family home in Kalungu Zone, Bunga, in Makindye Division, Kampala, was turned into a crime scene early Thursday morning after a 43-year-old Kenyan woman allegedly attacked her five daughters with a knife, killing two and injuring three others.

The woman, identified by police as Dorothy Namayo, was also found injured at the residence and taken to Mulago National Referral Hospital, where she remains under police guard. Police are investigating the incident as murder, attempted murder and arson.

According to the maid
The incident reportedly followed a domestic dispute between Namayo and her husband, Ederisa Troy, a Malian national, on Wednesday. The couple have been residing in Uganda for about 15 years. According to the household maid, Troy returned home at around 3 pm and found a water tap left running, which reportedly sparked a heated exchange between the couple before he left the house.

The maid also told investigators that the couple had been experiencing frequent disputes for the past three months, which she believed were linked to the husband’s relationship with another woman.

At 4 am while the housemaid was asleep, she was awakened by the sound of the children crying and calling for help from the main house.

At the same time, a Toyota HiAce parked in the compound was on fire.

The maid reportedly rushed to investigate and found that the children had severe stab wounds, with all the doors and the main gate locked by the prime suspect. She immediately raised the alarm, prompting neighbours to force their way into the house and intervene as emergency responders were called.

Two Children Died
14-year-old Khadija Daizy was found dead in her bedroom after sustaining fatal injuries to her neck.

Her 7-year-old sister, Hawa Dalena, was still alive when rescuers took her to Nsambya Hospital, but she later succumbed to her injuries.

The bodies of the two children were taken to Mulago City Mortuary for postmortem examinations.

Three Injured Children
Their three surviving siblings, identified by the maid as Dema, Danita and Delany, were also injured in the attack and taken to hospital for treatment. The ages are 13, 8 and 5, although the order of the names and ages has not been confirmed.

Mother Found Injured
Their mother, Dorothy Namayo, was found at the residence, locked in her bedroom with injuries believed to have been self-inflicted.

Investigators also recovered a jerrycan suspected to have contained petrol and collected other exhibits from the compound for forensic examination.

Reports have linked the incident to domestic violence, citing the housemaid’s account of the couple’s verbal fights.

Witnesses told investigators that they called the husband using one of the daughter’s phones, and he reportedly said Namayo had called him, threatening to kill the children and herself. This, however, has not yet been verified.

Investigators are expected to establish what happened between Namayo and her husband before he left the home and what happened afterwards.