A sombre mood engulfed the Kawino sub-location in the Rachuonyo South sub-county after an elderly man and his wife were burnt to death while asleep in their house.

Area Assistant Chief Eric Otieno confirmed that at 2:30 am on Tuesday, Joseph Onunga, aged 70, and his 50-year-old wife, Judith Mucha, were burnt beyond recognition in their house at Yala B Village.

Otieno said that the neighbours noticed the fire when the house was already burnt to ashes.

He said residents had rushed to the scene to rescue the couple, but their intervention proved to be too late. The administrator said the couple, must have been in deep sleep when the fire started.

He said when the fire subsided, the residents broke the door and found their bodies in the house.

“We rushed to the scene and found the fire at an advanced stage. Later, we broke the door and found the two bodies inside,” Otieno said.

He said there was a similar incident last year in which some unknown people attempted to burn the same house.

“Last year, someone threw a small container of petrol and set the house on fire, but the elderly couple raised an alarm, and the fire was put out by villagers before it could spread,” Otieno said.

He said that the motive of the attack, if indeed it was an arson, had not been established, but police have begun investigations.

 The bodies were moved to the Rachuonyo South sub-county Hospital Mortuary in Oyugis