The sanctity of a Sunday morning was violated in Homa Bay when a long-standing feud between two educators turned fatal. A retired teacher is dead, and a serving headteacher is on the run, following a brutal assault sparked by livestock trespassing on a maize plantation.

The incident in Gem Sori Kachiena has exposed the deadly volatility of land disputes in the region. Owuoth, a retiree enjoying his first year out of service, returned from worship to find his farm being grazed by his neighbor’s cattle. That neighbor was no stranger—he was a headteacher from a nearby Rangwe school. Words were exchanged, then blows, and finally, silence.

Weapons of Rage

Chief Peter Oula, who was among the first on the scene, described a chilling tableau. Broken clubs and a panga lay on the ground—evidence of the ferocity of the attack. The suspect didn’t just graze his cows; he allegedly waited for the owner to return, turning a civil trespass into a criminal ambush.

"It is painful," a relative told reporters. "He retired to enjoy his land, not to die on it." The victim succumbed to his injuries at Kisii Referral Hospital, while his wife fights for her life, having suffered severe trauma trying to save her husband.

• The Manhunt: Police have fanned out across Homa Bay to track down the suspect. His flight suggests premeditation or panic, but his status as a prominent local figure makes his disappearance all the more shocking.
• A Systemic Failure: Neighbours report that the two men had argued over boundaries before. The escalation to murder raises questions about the effectiveness of local conflict resolution mechanisms.

A Village Mourns

The tragedy has cast a pall over the village. Two families, linked by profession and proximity, are now destroyed—one by grief, the other by crime. The maize farm, now a crime scene, stands as a grim monument to a dispute that valued soil more than blood.

As investigations continue, the community is left grappling with the reality that their children’s role model is now a wanted killer.