A Kenyan woman, Patience Cherotich, has been arraigned before a Magistrate Court for allegedly setting the house of her former boyfriend on fire.
The 25-year-old lady was arrested after her Nigerian lover, Benjamin Obeten, reported her to the Kenyan authorities for destroying his property worth Sh120,000.
The incident involving the accused and the complainant, who were lovers reportedly occurred on August 10, 2023 atTRM Drive in Kasarani, Nairobi.
The charge read; “On the 10th day of August, 2023, at Veeland Apartments, you did willfully and unlawfully set fire to a structure used as a bedroom, valued at Sh120,000, belonging to Benjamin Obeten”.
It was gathered that after they broke up, Cherotich then begged Obeten to allow her to visit him at his home and he agreed.
But as soon as she arrived at his residence, she was said to have caused chaos while allegedly threatening Obeten’s life, prompting him to call for help from the apartment’s security guards, and the accused was forced out of the house.
He, however, took pity on Cherotich after she had spent hours in the cold, and allowed her back into the house to spend the night and return to her home in the morning.
The defendant slept on a couch in the complainant’s sitting room, and allegedly began banging on the his bedroom door at around 5am demanding to be allowed into his room.
Cherotich barged into the bedroom after her ex-lover opened the door to ask her to stop making a mess. He then went into the living room, leaving her alone in the bedroom.
Few minutes later, the lady came out from the room and asked for taxi fare and Obeten gave her Sh1,200, after which she hurriedly left.
Moments after she left, Obeten realised his house was on fire when he saw smoke and he quickly rushed in to find bedding and other items on fire.
The fire had consumed the entire bed, sheets and several other items in the house before he extinguished it with the help of neighbours.
Obeten reported the matter to Kasarani Police Station and the accused was tracked down and subsequently arrested.
The accused denied the charges read before her on September 13, and through a lawyer, pleaded for lenient bail conditions.
She told the court that she was a single mother of a seven-year-old boy who was left without care after her arrest.
Senior Principal Magistrate, Agnes Mwangi of Makadara Law Courts granted Cherotich a bail of Sh200,000 with a surety. The case has been adjourned for mention on November 14, ahead of trial on April 12 next year.
