Man accuses police in Kitui of beating him, breaking his leg

A man is recuperating at Mutomo Mission Hospital in Kitui County after reportedly being beaten up by police officers.

Mr Robert Kakai, a driver at the hospital, suffered a broken leg and head and chest injuries.

Witnesses said Mr Kakai’s wife reported him to the officers after a domestic quarrel.

The driver said he was taken from his mother’s shop by three officers on Friday evening and beaten up on claims that he assaulted his wife.

“They handcuffed and dragged me on a murram road for about 150 metres,” Mr Kakai said.

“I was then beaten until I lost consciousness.”

He said the beatings took place at the station’s report office even before he could be booked.

“My pleas for mercy fell on deaf ears. My mother and brother watched helplessly as the officers were beating me,” Mr Kakai said.

UNABLE TO STAND

He added that as he lay on the ground in pain, one of the officers hit him with a club just below his right knee as the others kicked him.

“At that point, I was unable to stand,” he said.

Villagers said as the beating went on, a crowd began gathering outside the station and shouted at the officers.

“The policemen gave in to pressure from the family and the residents and took him to hospital,” a resident who declined to be named said.

Doctors confirmed that the driver’s leg was broken.

Mutomo OCPD Clifford Nyaga said the driver’s family had complained to him and that investigations had been launched.

Mr Nyaga said he had not been briefed on the incident but would issue a comprehensive statement once investigations are complete.