A Kenyan man shot dead his mother-in-law on Monday night before turning the gun on himself in Barrow County in the state of Georgia, USA.
According to the police, Jennifer Muriu – who was the wife to the deceased – called the police shortly before 8 pm to report that her husband, Ian Muriu, 33, had fired a gun inside the couple’s home. “We immediately dispatched several police officers and Sheriff’s deputies to the scene but when they arrived at the Bethlehem subdivision, the two were already dead”, said Barrow County Sheriff Lt. Matt Guthas.
“At first, Mrs. Muriu did not know if anyone had been hurt by the shooting,” Guthas said Tuesday in a statement to the Nation.
Inside the home, investigators found 66 year old Diana Freeman, who had been living with the couple, dead from gunshot wounds. A few meters from her was Muriu’s body with a gushing gunshot wound in the head. “Mr Muriu and Ms Freeman’s bodies just lay there on the carpet,” Guthas said.
Authorities said the investigation are ongoing to establish the motive. “However, the indications at this point are that Ian Muriu shot and killed Diana Freeman, his mother-in-law, before turning the gun on himself and taking his own life.”
The Murius were co-owners of The Spitfire Restaurant at the Barrow County Airport, according to the restaurant’s Facebook page. The restaurant opened in May 2011 and is featured in this month’s edition of Georgia Magazine.
“The Murius moved to Barrow County after a decade working at restaurants and five-star resorts around the world,” the Magazine article states.
A local Newspaper, The Atlanta Journal Constitution (AJC), reported on Tuesday that the deaths remain under investigation.
By BMJ Muriithi in Atlanta
-kenyasatellitenetwork.com
