Police are investigating an incident whereby an administration police officer committed suicide after killing his lover on Thursday.
Isiolo county commissioner John Ondego said the officer came from duty and proceeded to have lunch at a canteen operated by his lover.
Ondego said minutes later, the two who were in early 40s started quarreling following which the officer shot dead the woman and then turned the gun on himself.
The canteen is located within the Administration police compound and the victims had reportedly cohabited for more than a year.
Ondego urged officers to always explore more appropriate ways of resolving disputes other than murdering spouses or committing suicide.
Cases of police officers killing their lovers and then committing suicide are on the increase in Kenya. In November, a police officer based in Nakuru shot his wife before turning the gun on himself.
The officer, identified as Constable Cornelius Talaam attached to the Piave police post in Njoro, shot his wife Eunice Wamboi several times before killing himself.
“There were six spent cartridges at the scene of the incident where the two were lying in a pool of blood,” Nakuru County Commander Hassan Barua said.
The deceased’s colleagues said they had spent the better part of the previous afternoon drinking before leaving at around 3pm. “The shootout could have happened between the time we left and 8am. When we realised he had not reported to work on Tuesday as normal, we went to his house only to find the two bodies lying dead in a pool of blood,” said a constable at the post.
The deceased’s neighbours said they heard gunshots but assumed it was just another police operation. “In was early morning when we heard several gunshots. We did not think it was something to worry about because the place was occupied by police who use guns,” Mary Wairimu, a neighbour said.