The father of the two children who were alleged to have been thrown into the Ngwerere River by their stepmother was yesterday saved from lynching by the residents in the area where the incident happened.
The residents where heard threatening to sort out their father Titus Kanyinji if the bodies of his deceased children were not found. They accused him of having caused the situation because of his decision to marry two wives.
According to the police, the fire brigade received a call from firefighter Beatrice Katenga on Wednesday, February 25, 2026 over a report of suspected drowning at Kwamwena Phase 4 in Ngwerere River.
The Fire brigade team was immediately dispatched, and passed through Kwamwena police post where they shared the details of the drowning case incident report.
Katenga narrated to the police that two minors; a boy aged 6 years old by the name of Mattias Kamanga and a girl aged 2 years 4 months old by the name of Tifiness Kamanga were reported to have been thrown into Ngwerere river by Mary Kashilika, who happened to be the second wife to the father of the drowned children.
The mother to the deceased has been identified as Fanny Kanyinji.
However, the fire brigade personnel could not proceed with the operation due to the time which could not permit the officers to enter into the river to conduct a search operation after 17:00hrs on the material date.
Therefore, the search operation was suspended to yesterday. However, by press time the bodies had not yet been found.
26-year-old woman, Mary Kachilika of Meanwood Kwamwena Phase 4, has been detained for the alleged murder of two children aged six and two.
Police assistant public relations officer Chipo Kaitisha said the arrest followed a report made on February 25, 2026, around 14:30 hours at Kwamwena Police.
Kaitisha said Kamanga alleged that his second wife threw his two children from his first wife into the Ngwerere River.
The incident is believed to have occurred earlier the same day around 12:00 hours near the Ngwerere River in Meanwood Phase 5.
Preliminary investigations indicate that the complainant is in a polygamous marriage, having married the suspect as his second wife on January 10, 2025.
Police said disputes reportedly arose due to jealousy, as one wife had children while the other did not.
On the day of the incident, the husband had gone to work while the first wife was outside doing household chores.
She later heard the children crying and discovered they were missing, prompting her to follow the sound toward the river.
A nearby fisherman allegedly witnessed the suspect throwing the children into the river and apprehended her.
Police and Fire Brigade officers visited the scene, but the children’s bodies have not yet been recovered.
