Over 50 police officers have been summoned by the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) over misconduct during the 2023 Azimio protests and the Gen-Z protests of 2024 that left dozens dead and scores injured.....CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE>>>
Notably, 15 of the officers summoned are senior police commanders mostly drawn from the Western region where the Azimio protests led to most deaths in 2023.
The officers are, therefore, required to present themselves before the IPOA detectives between Tuesday and Thursday this week.
Meanwhile, the National Police Service (NPS) has urged all the summoned officers to meet with their respective legal representatives today, September 16.
“Legal officers from this headquarters will meet with concerned officers at the Regional headquarters on September 16 for briefing prior to appearing at the Authority offices on the respective dates,” read part of a letter signed by Elizabeth Marube on behalf of the Deputy Inspector General.
This follows the Law Society of Kenya and the civil society’s concerns about police involvement in the abductions and deaths of Kenyan protestors in the series of protests that plagued most parts of the country in both 2023 and 2024.
IPOA had previously written to the Deputy Inspector General of NPS on August 30 saying that the investigations into the suspected misconduct were taking shape and almost coming to a close.
“In the course of its investigations, the Authority has established that several police officers were involved during the said police operations that resulted in deaths and serious injuries among other crimes,” the IPOA wrote in the statement to DIG.
The IPOA Act Section 7(1) grants the Authority the power to request documents and summon both serving and retired police officers.
Both series of protests led to the deaths of dozens of Kenyan protestors at the hands of police officers which led to even more uproar from Kenyans and human rights groups who accused the police of using excessive force and not allowing Kenyans to exercise their right to peacefully assemble.
Most notable of the cases that have been brought under scrutiny are the deaths of Reagan Ouko and Caroline Shiramba on June 25 and Daniel Wanje and December Shivachi on July 23.
Senior police officers in Nakuru have so far been grilled over the shooting of K24 TV Journalist Catherine Wanjeri during the Gen Z protests.
In a Historical case that made this summon possible, a ruling in 2022 sought to hold accountable the senior police officers working in Kisumu during the shooting of Baby Pendo which occurred during protests in 2017.
Among the senior police commanders summoned are Bungoma Police Commander Francis Kooli, Kakamega Police Commander Lucy Kananu, Bungoma South police commander Wilson Muraya and his Kakamega Central counterpart, the General Service Unit (GSU) officer in charge of the Kakamega State Lodge and the officer in charge of the Akichelesit Anti-Stock Theft Unit (ASTU)….CLICK HERE FOR MORE ARTICLE>>>
