Her husband takes a second wife; a mother stabs her five children, killing two

A Kenyan woman allegedly stabbed five of her children, killing two and seriously injuring three others, after her husband took a second wife.

The tragic incident occurred at their home in Bunga, Ggaba, Uganda, on August 20, 2026.

Dorothy Namayo, 43, allegedly turned against her children following a marital dispute with her Malian husband, Ederisa Troy, who is said to have taken another wife.

One of the children, 14-year-old Khadija Daizy, died at the scene after being stabbed in the neck. Another, 7-year-old Hawa Dalena, later succumbed to her injuries at Nsambya Hospital, where she had been rushed for treatment.

Three other children, aged 13, 8 and 5, survived the attack and are currently being treated in hospital.

The suspect is currently admitted to Mulago National Referral Hospital under police guard, while investigators examine a case of murder, attempted murder and arson.

Initial investigations indicate that Namayo embarked on this knife attack after an argument with Troy about a second marriage.

The family's housekeeper, Mariam Saana, told police that the incident followed months of marital strife between the couple.

Saana stated that the problems began in May, after Troy took a second wife.

According to her, Troy wanted sons because Namayo only had daughters.

"Since then, they argue and quarrel every time he comes home. There is no peace here anymore," Saana told the police.

The children reportedly called a friend of their father, who intervened and helped to calm the situation before Troy left the house.

On the day of the incident, Saana stated that she woke up around 5 a.m. after hearing noises coming from the main house. When she opened the door, she saw a burning car outside. One of the children was apparently at a window, calling for help and saying that their mother had stabbed them before running outside.

Saana stated that she tried to enter the main house, but found that the locks had been changed and the gate was secured with a new padlock.

She raised the alarm, attracting neighbors who forced the gate and entered by force through the main door, which was locked from the inside.

"Once inside, we found that the children's rooms were also locked and we had to force them open. We urgently transported the children in a police patrol vehicle to a clinic in Ggaba, and they were then transferred to the hospital in Nsambya," said one of the rescuers.

Namayo had also reportedly locked herself in a room. Police and neighbors found her in a pool of blood and rushed her to Nsambya Hospital.

Godfrey Mukisa, one of the neighbors who responded to the alarm, said they had difficulty gaining access to the house.

"Upon arrival, we discovered that one child had been killed by a slash to the neck," he said. "Another child had suffered severe stab wounds to the stomach, and the others also had stomach injuries."

Mukisa stated that the neighbors initially hesitated to intervene because they did not want to interfere in what they considered a private family dispute.

The investigation aims to establish the precise sequence of events, the motive for the attack, and what happened immediately before and after the children were stabbed.

Autopsies of the deceased children should also help investigators establish the exact causes of death.