Police probe bar brawl in Meru involving GSU officers where several people were injured
Richard Koome (left) talks to relatives and friends at St Theresa's Mission Hospital, Kiirua on April 11, 2016 after he was admitted following an alleged assault by GSU officers Sunday night after a bar brawl. Police are investigating the incident. PHOTO | PHOEBE OKALL | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- One police officer was admitted to Maua hospital following the Sunday fight where a government vehicle was also damaged.
- Police Commander Samson Kiine said the investigations were yet to establish the number of police officers involved in the brawl.
- The bar owner, Richard Koome, said there were about nine GSU officers, some of whom were in uniform.
- The officers escaped on foot leaving behind their vehicle as rowdy members of the public engaged them.
Police in Igembe North, Meru County have launched investigations into an incident where General Service Unit (GSU) officers were involved in a scuffle over a woman in a bar in Mutuati Town, leaving several people injured.
One police officer was admitted to Maua hospital following the Sunday fight where a government vehicle was also damaged.
Meru County Police Commander Samson Kiine, however, said there were reports that the fighting broke after one officer claimed his phone had been stolen.
Speaking to the Nation by phone, Igembe North OCPD Peter Kimani said police had received several versions of what caused the incident, and were yet to establish its root.
“We have launched investigations to establish the cause of the fight. We are getting different versions because it happened in a bar and those involved might have been drunk. One GSU officer was injured as well as the bar owner. They two of them are in hospital,” Mr Kimani said.
He said the investigations were yet to establish the number of police officers involved in the brawl.
NINE GSU OFFICERS
However, the bar owner, Richard Koome, who spoke to the Nation from his hospital bed, said there were about nine GSU officers, some of whom were in uniform.
“Some of the officers came to my bar at around 10pm but there was no space because all seats were occupied. They went to a section where a certain woman was and started pushing out other patrons.
"That is when the fighting broke out. I was hit with a stone and lost three teeth as I tried to settle the dispute,” Mr Koome said.
He claimed that other officers who were outside the bar started throwing stones breaking some windowpanes.
Mr Isaac Mwiti, who sustained injuries on the head, said about five GSU officers entered the bar on Sunday night in pursuit of a woman.
“Many sustained minor injuries because stones were being thrown from outside. Disciplinary action should be taken against the officers,” he said.
The officers escaped on foot leaving behind their vehicle as rowdy members of the public engaged them.
