Nairobi News

An 85-year-old American woman was on Tuesday charged with first-degree murder and assault for shooting two Kenyan sisters, killing one of them last month.

Beverly Jenne, however, pleaded not guilty to the charges.

SHOT DEAD

Jenne shot and killed Janet Oyuga, 37, and critically injured her elder sister Angela Oyuga.

The two sisters had allowed Jenne to live in their house, which was previously owned by the elderly woman.

Police believe Jenne killed Janet first before ambushing Angela when she arrived home from work on December 19.

Janet was pronounced dead at the scene, but Angela survived despite being shot several times in the chest and back.

Initially, authorities were unsure who shot the sisters but quickly identified Jenne as a suspect.

The elderly woman was rushed to a Tacoma Hospital after the police found her trying to strangle herself with an extension cord inside the home.

ANIMOSITY

According to charging documents, the homeowner purchased the house at an auction in November 2019 after it went into foreclosure.

The new tenants allowed Jenne, who had owned the home since 1979, to stay in their house while looking for a new place to live.

According to the charging documents, Jenne “harbored significant animosity” towards Janet that culminated in shooting her multiple times and killing her.

After allegedly killing Janet, Jenne then shot Angela in the back as she was walking upstairs to her bedroom after getting home from work.

According to charging documents obtained by The Seattle Times, a revolver with six spent cartridges, indicating all the rounds had been fired, were found on the bed where she had been siting.

Inside, authorities would also find a bloody hammer and screwdriver in the kitchen and a pool of blood on the floor.

DESTROYED BY FIRE

In a handwritten letter later found in the suspect’s car, Jenne also wrote that Janet was “not a nice person.”

“She drove me to this. Janet just pushed and pushed and I just couldn’t cope anymore as I had no one to help me… I think she was getting ready to evict me and I’m 85 and no place to go,” she wrote in the letter, going on to detail in-house conflicts.

She also accused Janet of taking her belongings.

The note, signed and dated on the night of the incident, also referenced a cemetery plot and specified that Jenne didn’t want to be buried near her former husband, the charging documents state.

And in a devastating blow, the home where the dispute took place was destroyed by fire the morning of December 30.

Fire investigators say the fire started in the kitchen, but were unable to determine a cause.

Friends and relatives of the Oyuga sisters have launched a GoFundMe page to fly Janet’s remains back home to Kenya.