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An 18-year-old Ugandan woman shocked an Eldoret court after she confessed to the bizarre murder of her six-month-old son, saying she was unable to care for him after the father abandoned parental responsibilities.

The teen mother was convicted and sentenced to  six years in jail by Justice Reuben Nyakundi without the option of a fine.

Looking confused and distressed in the dock, the convict, told the judge she committed the heinous act in an attempt to free herself from the burden of taking care of him.

In defence, she recounted to the court how she strangled the child, then wrapped his body in a gunny bag before dumping it in a shallow well.

“It is true I killed my son, then wrapped his body in a gunny bag and dumped it in a nearby shallow well as I was unable to take care of the child on my own,” she told the court.

She claimed prior to committing the crime, she was under depression, stress and fear after the father of the baby abandoned them.

The court heard that after committing murder, she went underground for three days to evade arrest from the police who were pursuing her.

This was after a detective attached to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations at Eldoret South Police Station was informed about the incident by residents.

She later resurfaced and walked to the station where she confessed to being behind the death of her son.

Police detained her before she was arraigned in court to face the murder trial.

She is said to have committed the offence on October 28, 2023 at Kabogo area in Kapseret sub-county, Uasin Gishu county.

She was represented by lawyer Robert Makori while the prosecution was led by Mark Mugun.