Three Kenyan Officers Face Murder Charges After Assaulted Blogger Dies in Custody

Three Kenyan police officers have been charged with the murder of 31-year-old blogger Albert Ojwang, who died after being assaulted in police custody earlier this month. His death has led to nationwide protests in Kenya.

Ojwang was arrested on 6 June in Homa Bay County after posting a message about Deputy Inspector General of Police, Eliud Lagat, on social media. He was reportedly picked up by officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) and transported over 400 kilometres to the Central Police Station in Nairobi. He died the following day.

Police initially claimed Ojwang had sustained head injuries from banging his head against a cell wall and that he was rushed to Mbagathi Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival. However, these claims were contradicted by an official post-mortem conducted by government pathologist Dr Bernard Midia.

Dr Midia found that Ojwang died from neck compression and blunt force trauma. The pathologist said injuries to his scalp, face, limbs, and torso could not have been self-inflicted.

The three officers charged with murder are Samson Kiprotich, James Mukhwana, and Peter Kimani. They appeared in court on Monday, 23 June. Three civilians are also facing charges in connection with the case.

Eliud Lagat, who lodged the defamation complaint against Ojwang, temporarily stepped aside from his role last week to allow investigations to proceed. He has denied any wrongdoing and pledged to cooperate with investigating authorities.

Public anger increased further on Tuesday, 17 June, when a street vendor, Boniface Kariuki, was shot and critically injured during a protest in Nairobi. An Associated Press journalist witnessed a masked police officer shooting the unarmed man at close range. The victim, who was holding a packet of face masks, was reportedly not involved in the protest but was caught up in a confrontation with officers on the sidewalk. He was shot in the head while walking away.

An Africanews report confirms that Kariuki is currently being treated at Kenya’s largest referral hospital, alongside at least ten others injured during the demonstration. Police later released a statement saying the officer responsible had been arrested.

Activists have called for a nationwide shutdown on Wednesday to protest police violence and to commemorate the anniversary of last year’s deadly crackdown on anti-tax protests.

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