In many Kenyan homes, there exists a quiet force that keeps everything in motion—a house help. Their work goes beyond simple chores; they are the ones who ensure that daily operations run smoothly, especially in the absence of the woman of the house.
Housekeepers check an adequate supply of milk for the baby, check a home phone in case of emergency, do the cooking, cleaning and laundry, and handle it all with calmness and competence, ensuring that life goes on without a hitch.
However, some househelps seem to spring from the hottest part of domestic hell. And the rise in cases of nannies committing crimes in many homes has been of grave concern to employers, and now the criminal justice system.
Some have been taken to court for assaulting children under their custody and stealing from their employers. In turn, Nairobians and Kenyans in general have been accused of employing people they know very little about and end up being victims of the helper’s evil nature.
In one of the latest incidents, Norah Michelle, an Australian-based nurse on holiday and staying with her relative at Runda Estate in Nairobi, was not prepared for the horror that she would have to deal with, courtesy of a housekeeper commonly referred to as 'mboch'.
28-year-old Violet Ndukwe, whom she had paid Sh14,000 a month to take care of her two children; the woman she fed, housed, and even clothed to keep her comfortable, became her biggest nightmare.
Clutch bag open
On the afternoon of August 8, 2024, Norah walked into her bedroom and noticed her clutch bag containing her diamond and gold rings and other expensive accessories was open.
Sensing something was not right, she walked straight to where the bag was and that’s when she noticed her gold ring worth US$5,300 (equivalent to Sh683,700) was missing.
“I immediately confronted my nanny since she was the only one who had access to the room and asked her about my ring. The nanny denied anything concerning the disappearance of my precious gold ring but instead said she was being accused falsely,” Norah told the police.
She says that her nanny stole the ring a day before she took a short off duty to visit her three children who reside in Kawangware area.
The nurse, however, on August 10 informed her sister-in-law namely Alma concerning the theft incident by her mboch.
“I was introduced to one officer of DCI Gigiri who in turn sent officers to our Runda home for further interrogation and Ndukwe was arrested and escorted to the police station where investigations revealed that she stole the ring and sold it at Kawangware Market for Sh4,000 to one Francis Mwema,” Norah said.
Detectives haunted Mwema who was arrested in Kawangware area but the ring has not been recovered after he told police he had misplaced it.
Upon arraignment of the duo before Milimani Law Court on Monday, August 12, 2024, Ndukwe stunned people by pleading guilty to stealing her boss’s gold ring and selling it.
While admitting to having committed the offence, Ndukwe said she was provoked by the health status of her sickly father.
“I am pleading with the court and my lady employer Norah to have mercy and forgive me. It is true that I took the ring and sold it for Sh4,000 to my co-accused Mwema in Kawangware because my father needed urgent medical attention,” said Ndukwe amid tears.
Magistrate Rose Ndombi heard that Ndukwe stole the gold ring from Norah before she sold it to Mwema, a Kawangware-based shopkeeper.
“I just wanted my father to get well. I did not know the ring was valuable to my boss Madam Norah, I have three small children who depend on me for upkeep and it is regrettable that I stole the ring. I will do my best to return the money and have her ring back but I plead that I be forgiven,” she said.
“Norah told me if l sold her ring worth tens of thousands (sic) for only Sh4,000 it is a pity,” Ndukwe added.
The house help also confessed before the court that she stole the ring on August 3, 2024, at Runda Acacia Grove before proceeding on a break. Ndukwe told the court that she picked up the ring from her employer’s bedroom floor while cleaning and decided to sell it.
“I sold the ring to Mwema through the help of my friend Harriet Khasala,” Ndukwe told the court.
On the other hand, Mwema who is said to be a second-hand ring seller denied having bought the ring from Ndukwe as alleged and asked for his release on bail on grounds that he was not a flight risk.
Through his lawyer, Mwema said he has two brothers working in Nairobi and would wish to be granted an opportunity to clear his name.
“We pray for lenient bail terms and the court is at liberty to grant any further orders,” his lawyer submitted.
Magistrate Ndombi granted Mwema Sh500,000 cash bail and directed that a pre-sentencing report be availed in court for Ndukwe before passing her sentence on September 5, 2024.
Ndukwe and Norah's matter is one of the many cases that the courts have handled concerning househelps stealing from their employers either accessories, children, or committing grievous crimes.
The facts in Ndukwe and her employer Norah's case are similar to Shelsmith Kiprono’s alias Jerop who stole Sh98 million stashed in her employer’s house in the Langata neighbourhood.
The house help, who was charged before Kibera law courts, is said to have colluded to steal Sh4 million and Sh94 million (US$806,000), both in cash, from her employer with her four accomplices Caleb Ngomere, Brian Agivaza, Jackline Minayo and Eunice Akinyi.
Kiprono and her four co-accused also made away with jewellery worth Sh4 million and copies of logbooks and title deeds totalling to Sh104 million owned by her employer.
The incident came barely a month after two other house helps were also arraigned at the Miliamani Law Courts on May 9. The duo, Ruth Kageha Livole and Violet Engesia Aluse were accused of stealing Sh32 million from their boss Atog Amos Agok Juac in upmarket Karen suburbs.
The two are said to have made away with a black bag from their employer’s apartment Tipuwama Apartment, which had US$280,000 (Sh32,488,400) April 15. Additionally, the domestic workers are accused of taking three golden rings in the process.
Similarly, Pauline Njana who was a house help to former Cabinet minister Joseph Kamotho’s wife, Emmy was charged with stealing from her employer. Emmy went abroad and left Pauline to watch over the house.
On coming back, Emmy found herself short of Sh260,000 which she had left at her Kitisuru home. Later on, Pauline would be accused of stealing the money and planning to use it for construction back at her rural home.
Agnes Atieno Anyango, who worked as a house help has since been sentenced to five years for 'stealing' her employer’s one-year-old child in Shauri Yako estate of Homa Bay town. It is said that on August 2, 2023, Atieno 'stole' the child and attempted to flee with him while the infant’s mother was away.
Joyce Mwangi also made headlines last year for allegedly sexually assaulting her employer’s two-year-old son. The house help was captured on CCTV committing the offence inside her employer’s house in Soweto estate, Embakasi.
The boy’s mother reported the crime after checking in on her son via a CCTV camera she had installed in her house and connected to her mobile phone. She reported the matter to the police and showed them the video which prompted them to arrest the suspect.
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