Nakuru woman stabbed by pastor speaks out

She lies on her bed, writhing in pain, in a bed she never expected to be in, nor could she have imagined such a situation happening to her.

"It's heartbreaking. It is heartbreaking to see myself like this, and after what the doctors have told me about my recovery, this will really affect me as the breadwinner for my family," she says, her voice strained with pain.

Florence Wanjiku Gichuki says all she wants now is justice, and as a single mother she does not know how she will raise her children.

Wanjiku was attacked on Thursday night by her boyfriend, Elias Njeru, a leader and member of the JCM church, leaving her with serious stab wounds and the loss of her finger bones.

Mtaa Wangu spoke to her at a local hospital where she recounted the events leading up to the attack. Some of the information here may be gruesome and as Mtaa Wangu we do not condone any acts of violence.

"I was supposed to meet Njeru at a hotel in Nakuru at around 5.30pm on Thursday, a meeting we had arranged the day before. We discussed some business and personal matters and everything went smoothly. We agreed on everything," she recalls.

Satisfied with the meeting, Wanjiku prepared to head home, but Njeru insisted on staying for refreshments, but what happened next was not what she had expected.

"Njeru followed me home and when I arrived at the gate, he attacked me. I tried to drive off and run away, but unfortunately I hit the back of his vehicle. He got out of his vehicle and came and shouted at me, saying 'ni gari ya nani unagonga?"

She remembers locking her door but leaving her window open. Njeru took advantage of the open window to turn off the car, took the keys, hit her on the head with his hands and dragged her out of the car.

"When I was outside, I felt myself being stabbed. I tried to protect myself with my hands and lost all my fingers on this hand. I am due to go to the theatre on Saturday morning, the other one too, he stabbed me and I ended up with deep cuts. He also stabbed me on my right leg," Wanjiku recalls uncomfortably.

She says she tried to run to an empty plot of land nearby, but couldn't because of the pain in her right leg.

"I fell down and he caught up with me and started attacking me again, this time on my left leg. I have three deep cuts here. In total, I have 18 cuts, including on my back where I have a stab wound, he was aiming for my stomach but I turned," says Wanjiku, trying to show her injuries.

The security guard at her apartment tried to stop Njeru, but he continued to threaten them. 

The altercation attracted the attention of members of the public who came and helped cover her wounds, resulting in Njeru fleeing the scene.

According to Wanjiru, the guard borrowed a neighbour's vehicle, which took her to hospital. 

"By the time we got to the hospital, the neighbours were calling to say that Njeru was back at my house, but they really protected my child," she says.

"He also came to the hospital and said his wife and children were here, but he was not allowed to enter the facility. He left and went back to my house and was even there on Friday morning."

Wanjiku says this is the first time Njeru has ever physically assaulted her.

"This has all happened because I did not agree with what he was saying. I'm a single mother and I don't know how I'm going to bring up my children after what has happened," she says in anguish. 

Wanjiku has tried to move out and has even gone the extra mile to pay for an another house, but Njeru usually finds out where she stays.

"If he's brought forward, I'll be the happiest woman in the world," she says.