Hair braider fatally stabbed during night out in Tanzania’s Arusha

Arusha. “I was sleeping here; two girls who are my child's friends came. I saw them and was startled. I asked them, why have you come so early in the morning dressed wrapped up like that, or has Irene died?”

Those are the words of Ms Mariam Selemani, the mother of Irene Mallya (24), a hair braider and resident of Arusha City, who is alleged to have died after being stabbed with a bottle at a club in the city.

The incident allegedly occurred on the night of Sunday, September 13, 2026, at a club where Irene was with her companions.

A quarrel reportedly broke out, during which she was fatally stabbed with a bottle.

Speaking at the funeral venue on Monday night, September 14, 2026, Ms Selemani said the last time she communicated with her daughter was on the evening of Sunday, September 13.

She said she called her daughter to tell her that her child, who was at her home, was coughing.

“I called and told her the child was coughing. She told me to go and take medicine for the minor, and that she would come in the morning. I did not communicate with her again; then I came to be told in the morning she had died,” she lamented.

Ms Selemani said two of Irene's friends arrived at her home on Monday morning while she was sleeping and told her that Irene had been injured and rushed to Arusha Mount Meru Regional Referral Hospital, where she died.

She said that when she asked them what had happened, they told her Irene had quarrelled with someone and was allegedly stabbed with a bottle.

"I was sleeping here. Two girls who are my child's friends came and stood there. I saw them; I was startled. I asked them, ' Why have you come so early in the morning, dressed and wrapped up like that, or has Irene died? That is what I asked them,” she remembers.

"I told them, ' Please tell me the truth: has my child died. They told me no let us go outside. I told them I cannot go outside; let us talk right here. They told me, "Truly, Irene has passed away. They told me Irene I don't know, was arguing with someone, and then stabbed her with a bottle,” she added.

"She was my friend, my companion. When I had trouble, she told me, ' Mother, wait, I am sending you money. Who- why have you left me naked? Why have you humiliated me, my child?" she cried.

Ms Selemani said her daughter was a hair braider and had gone to a club with friends on Sunday. She was the firstborn of her four children.

"Irene was a good child. When I had trouble with someone, I didn't know what happened until now; I don't understand. She is my firstborn. She has three younger siblings. She helped a lot whenever I had trouble; she helped me. I don't understand, dear; she was my refuge," explained Ms Selemani.

Ms Rehema Ramadhan, who raised Irene from a young age, said the deceased grew up in their family and was a well-behaved child.

She said they received news of her death with great pain, adding that they still did not have a clear picture of how the incident occurred.

She said that after seeking information from some of the people who had been with Irene and her companions, they received differing accounts of what had happened.

"We found two of her companions. I asked what happened; they said there was a quarrel, and in quarrelling Irene went to mediate, but we are getting different stories; we are not getting understandable answers," she said.

Arusha Regional Police Commander Justine Masejo said the force had launched an investigation into the incident to establish the circumstances surrounding the death and identify those involved.