NAIROBI, Kenya, Apr 12 — Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki now says the police will now move to arrest five suspects linked to the murder of a boda boda operator in Chuka after a court lifted anticipatory bails granted to the suspects.
Daniel Mutembei is said to have been attacked by five individuals and subsequently succumbed to injuries sustained from the attack.
“The vacation of anticipatory bail are collapsing today and warrants of arrests to issue against the suspects will be effected if they will not be extended,” Kindiki stated.
The five suspects had moved to High Court in Chuka to seek anticipatory bail to bar their arrest by police officers pending the hearing of the case.
Reports indicate that the boda-boda rider was attacked on March 18 and was found for the dead the following morning. It is said that before he could take his last breath, he had identified individuals who attacked him.
“Although critically injured it was reported that Mr. Mutembei was able to talk and identified those that attacked him and gave their names, five suspects. He was taken to the hospital but he succumbed to injuries,” Kindiki told MPs where he appeared before the National Assembly on Wednesday.
He said the National Police Service had dispatched the Internal Affairs Unit to investigate Mutembei’s murder with the Independent Police Oversight Authority (IPOA) having commenced a probe.
“The investigation are not concluded but we have reinforced police deployment to deal with the matter. We have sent Embu regional commander Rono Bungei to deal with the matter as some people had raised aspersions on the OCPD, OCS in Chuka,” he stated.
Wandayi bias claims
Kindiki gave the assurance even as he denied allegations of bias of double standards in unravelling civilian deaths blamed on police particularly those related to mass protests by Azimio supporters.
“The government has no double standards and doesn’t respond to cases based on where they happen. In the matter that Wandayi raised we acted faster but there no question to respond on what we have done,” he said.
“The same measures in Chuka are the same applied on this issue. The internal affairs as we speak are on the ground. IPOA is also on ground,” Kindiki added.
Minority Leader Opiyo Wandayi raised queries on the ministry’s response citing prompt action in Mutembei’s death yet no tangible investigation had been instituted on police excesses during Azimio-led anti-government protests.
He said the fatal shooting of a third-year student at Maseno University during Azimio protests on March 20 as well as the death of a police officer in Nyamira who was run over by a police car.
“Could you confirm is in those instances you have released the police officers in the same Internal Affairs Unit to handle investigations?” Wandayi posed.
Brutal force
The Minority Leader questioned why Kenyans were losing their lives during the mass protests yet the Police Service Act restricts police officers from using live bullets in crowd control.
“Is it now the policy of the Kenya Police Service to quell riots through live bullets as opposed to the old policy of using rubber bullets. If so then when did these changes occur and for whose benefit?” Wandayi asked.
Deputy Minority Leader Robert Mbui asked why killings were being reported during the protests yet Kenyans have the right to picket.
“Are shoot to kill orders the new norm by the Kenya Kwanza administration. Do the police bosses understand the Constitution (2010) that Kenyans have the right to picket?” Mbui asked.
Kindiki however explained to lawmakers that the Inspector General of Police had given strict instructions against the use of live bullets to control the masses.
“There’s no shoot to kill order and in fact, the reason the OCPD and OCS in Chuka incident was transferred is because there were strict order by Inspector General. If indeed it was police who fired at Mutembei then action will be taken,” he said.
