Family Seeks Help to Rescue Kenyan Woman from Saudi Arabian Prison

The family of a Kenyan woman who is languishing in a Saudi Arabian jail is appealing for the government’s assistance to secure her freedom.

Paulina Wanjiru Ndung’u, 45, was reportedly sentenced to 17 years in jail in 2019 for attempted murder after she was accused of trying to poison her employer’s food.

Her sister Mary Wairimu said the family is still hopeful that Wanjiru can be rescued from Marazi Prison in Riyadh where she has spent the last five years.

“Since the jailing of my older sister, my mother’s life has never been the same. She is now on anti-depressants and suffers from high blood pressure,” Wairimu told Nation.

Wanjiru first traveled to the Gulf nation in 2017 hoping to build a better life for her family and secured a job as a domestic worker.

In 2019, she visited her family in Kenya and despite her sister expressing reservations about returning to Saudi Arabia, Wanjiru insisted on traveling back as her employer still owed her some dues.

"She argued that her employer owed her more than Sh500,000. I told my sister to look for ways of getting the cash without traveling back, but she refused,” Wairimu said.

A few months later, she was arrested and jailed on accusations of attempted murder. The family from Gilgil, Nakuru County, said they know little about the case.

“The details about the case are scanty. As a family, we have not been able to establish what exactly transpired. We are appealing to the Kenyan embassy to come to our rescue,” Wairimu pleaded.

“I don’t know if we can get legal representation. We are groping in the dark,” she added.

Kenyan woman Susan Njoki Njoroge, who returned to the country recently after sharing the same jail with Wanjiru, delivered her message to her mother and siblings.

“I was jailed for six months for lack of legal documents and bumped into Wanjiru who narrated her story to me. She is suffering mental anguish and just wants to return home,” said Njoki.

“With legal representation, I am optimistic she may be able to secure release. I was able to read through her court papers and confirmed that she has actually been jailed for slightly more than 17 years. My humble appeal is for the Kenyan government to come to her aid,” she added.

The family hopes to benefit from pro-bono representation.