Busia Police are in search of a 36-year-old woman who married off her 14-year-old daughter over what she claimed was the lack of the required fees to allow her to join high school.

The woman had orchestrated the arranged marriage to her 25-year-old accomplice who is also on the run and forced her daughter to move to his house as his wife.

"We had not even known each other, but my mother told me that I had to be married to him," the shaken young girl stated.

Neighbors led by one Jackline Malesi raised alarm over the incident, calling on the assistant chief Josephine Juma to alert the police who raided the homestead only to find the suspects were gone and the young girl on the premises.

The victim explained that she had spent the week in the hands of her alleged husband as a last resort by her mother as she could not raise the funds for her Form One tuition fees as her counterparts due to financial constraints despite her exemplary KCPE performance with 325 marks.

Assistant Chief Juma stated that owing to the longevity of the period that the girl had stayed in the man's home, her first plan of action was to take her to the dispensary to ascertain that there were no signs of defilement as she was still was a minor.

She then alerted law enforcers of the case who immediately began a search for the suspects.

She also called on members of the community and stakeholders in the education sector to come together and fundraise towards the girl's fees as well as transfer her to a safer environment where she would be allowed to continue with her studies.

Other members of the public urged the police to intensify their search of the suspects and also asked the youth to refuse such marital offers as they are detrimental to the future of the young students.