Six police officers to be charged with murder

Six police officers have been arrested after the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Keriako Tobiko recommended that they be charged with the murder of a motorist they allegedly shot dead in Ruaka, Kiambu County last January. Read (Policing the Kenya way)

The officers include Sergeant Albert Mwaniki Njeru, Constables Kennedy Ochieng Ominde, Daniel Matage Bakari, Elijah Kemboi Kebeni, James Njogu Weru, and Ariga who are currently detained at the Kileleshwa Police Station and will be arraigned in court on Monday.

At the time of the shooting, all the police officers were based at Gigiri Police Station.

Sergeant Mwaniki was arrested at Kenya Police College in Kiganjo, Nyeri, where he was undergoing a promotion (Inspector’s) course.

The DPP also recommended that Sergeant Mwaniki be charged with another offence of theft.

Nairobi police boss Moses Ombati said that investigations was ongoing to establish the circumstances under which the officers shot dead the driver who was accompanied by his friends on his way home.

“The file was forwarded to the DPP who recommended that the officers be charged with murder,” said Ombati.

He added that the circumstances were not justified hence the recommendation.

The police have the right to use justified force while apprehending a suspect or trying to prevent a crime, and may use lethal or non-lethal means, depending with the circumstance.

For force to be considered justifiable, the threat itself must be unavoidable and immediate, and the amount of force used must be at an appropriate level under the circumstance.

Last year, two officers from the Muthangari Police Station were arraigned in court after they allegedly shot dead Ibrahim Ondego and his 14 year old son Joseph Nyaberi on November 23 at dawn as they were going to the market. Read (Police officers charged with murder of father and son)

Mr Ondengo was first shot and minutes later, his son.

Police claimed that the two were armed and threatened the lives of the officers who were armed with AK47 rifles, justifying the killings.

This sparked protests as area residents claim that they heard the boy pleading with the officers not to kill his father.