After the grave challenges of 2020 sparked by the COVID-19 pandemic, some families around the world began the New Year on a tragic note.
On Saturday morning in Kenya, a couple and their three children were found dead inside their rented single room apartment in Githurai 45, Kiambu County.
At Agbado Crossing area of Ogun State, a mentally-sick man identified as Peter Akinjogun, allegedly stabbed his elder brother, Femi Akinjogun, to death because of a New Year ram.
Local sources say Femi slaughtered a ram for family members who came to celebrate with him, and asked Peter to join him in butchering the ram. The request allegedly angered Peter.
He allegedly picked up a knife and stabbed Femi in the neck, leaving him in a pool of blood. The 42-year-old victim and father of two children was rushed to a hospital where he was confirmed dead.
Police operatives from the Agbado Police Station where the tragic incident was reported got Peter arrested by a team led by the Divisional Police Officer, Kuranga Yero, a Chief Superintendent of Police.
Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Abimbola Oyeyemi, a Superintendent of Police confirmed the incident, pointing out that Peter will be sent to a psychiatric hospital.
“The man has been suffering from a mental problem since 2017 and he was taken to a psychiatric hospital in Abeokuta. His elder brother was the one paying the medical bills. The brother only asked him to assist in butchering the ram but he stabbed him. He was rushed to a hospital where he died”, the police said.
In Kenya, the police are however, suspecting that the five persons- a father, mother and their three children – died from carbon monoxide poisoning.
Ruiru Divisional Police Commander, Phineas Lingera, told a local news platform that the man sold boiled maize in the area and may have lit a jiko to prepare the commodity for the next day.
“We believe he overslept and forgot to put out the fire. The family may have died of suffocation after inhaling carbon monoxide”, Lingera said, pointing out that an investigation will confirm the cause of death.
The police noted that foul play is not suspected because there were no physical body injuries or signs of a struggle. The police commander also said police officers found the maize boiling.
Police sources said they were alerted by neighbours who became worried as the man did not start working at the expected time.
They went to his house and knocked on the door, which was locked from inside, but there was no response.
The three children were aged three months, and six and 8 years. The bodies were taken to City Mortuary in Nairobi County.
Meanwhile, in Algeria on Thursday, AFP, an international news agency reports that 20 people were killed when a vehicle carrying mainly African nationals overturned in the south of the country.
According to the report, the crash took place near the town of Tamanrasset and 11 people were also injured, the rescue unit said on its Facebook page.
Those killed were 19 African nationals, including children, and the Algerian driver of the pick-up truck, which was completely destroyed in the accident, it added.
The injured were given first aid at the scene of the accident before being transferred to a hospital.
Tamanrasset in southernmost Algeria is near the country’s borders with Mali and Niger, and a key transit route for illegal migrants from sub-Saharan Africa trying to reach the Mediterranean to then cross to Europe.
In recent years, Algeria has seen an influx of sub-Saharan migrants, many pouring across the country’s southern border.
The civil protection unit urged drivers to respect traffic rules in Algeria, where more than 3,000 people were killed on the roads in 2019 according to official figures.
