Man kills wife, two children, hangs self

Grief gripped residents of Ryarushengye Village in Rwekiniro Sub-county, Ntungamo District, on Saturday morning when they found bodies of a woman and her two children in a pool of blood in the family house, and that of the family head dangling on a rope.

Eldard Kanyarutookye, 55, is said to have murdered his wife on suspicion that she conceived the children outside wedlock.

The couple, who had lived together for about 10 years, had three children; two boys, and a girl.

Kanyarutookye, who was a traditional doctor, allegedly used a machete, an axe, and hoe to kill the wife and the boys before he took his own life. The deceased woman has been identified as Christine Tibekinga, 45, and the children as Joseph Behanga, 6, and the other only as John, 3.

The third child, Viola Magoba, 9, was found still alive but in critical condition and was taken to Doctor’s Referral Hospital in Rubaare.

According to Ms Topista Komwaani, 67, the mother of Tibekinga, the couple had longstanding quarrels over children and land ownership.

The village chairperson, Mr Musafiri Kisangani, said they intervened and each was given share of the land.

Ms Boniface Rutehenda, a close friend of Kanyarutookye, said the latter refused to take care of children, especially the boys, and the two have been living in separate bed rooms for a long time.

The area councillors, Mr Benard Ahabwe Mukasa, and Ms Justine Kyofuna Tumuhimbise, decried the rampant cases of domestic violence in the district.

The district police commander, Mr Damian Katwesiime, described the act as horrible and asked couples to always report to police cases of domestic violence.

On Saturday, the Rwenanuura Parish priest, Rev Gideon Ndyabawe, asked mourners to accept Jesus as the only comforter in every situation.