Assaulted journalists file complaint
From left: Tana River County spokesman Ali Wario, driver Abdi Elema, Mr Reuben Ogachi of Citizen TV and Nation journalist Nehemiah Okwembah leave Malindi criminal investigations headquarters on April 26, 2015 after recording statements. They were attacked and injured by General Service Unit officers last week. KEVIN ODIT | NATION
What you need to know:
- Mr Okwemba suffered multiple tissue injuries on his legs and other parts of his body, while Mr Ogachi’s leg was fractured. They were discharged from the Aga Khan Hospital in Mombasa on Friday and Thursday, respectively.
- The reporter thanked his colleagues in Malindi and Mombasa for according them physical and emotional support. He accused Inspector-General of Police Joseph Boinnet of being unfair to them by quickly defending the GSU officers’ action.
The journalists and Tana River County staff who were attacked and injured by General Service Unit officers have recorded statements with police.
Mr Nehemiah Okwembah of NTV, Citizen TV’s Reuben Ogachi, county information officer Ali Wario and driver Abdi Elema filed complaints at the Malindi Police Station on Saturday.
They were brutally attacked two weeks ago at the ADC Galana ranch, where they had gone to investigate a story. Malindi divisional criminal investigations officer Paul Wachira, who received them at the station, assured them of thorough and independent investigations.
MULTIPLE TISSUE INJURIES
Mr Okwemba suffered multiple tissue injuries on his legs and other parts of his body, while Mr Ogachi’s leg was fractured. They were discharged from the Aga Khan Hospital in Mombasa on Friday and Thursday, respectively.
Mr Wario and Mr Elema suffered multiple injuries, including fractured bones.
The victims arrived at the police station at 10.30am on Saturday and left after five hours. They then addressed journalists, asking the government to take action against their attackers.
Mr Okwembah expressed fears over his safety following the painful ordeal. “Our safety is not a hundred per cent guaranteed because the GSU officers who attacked us had an intention to kill us, had their boss not intervened.’’
The reporter thanked his colleagues in Malindi and Mombasa for according them physical and emotional support. He accused Inspector-General of Police Joseph Boinnet of being unfair to them by quickly defending the GSU officers’ action.
Mr Ogachi said the officers should have arrested them instead of beating them up.
At the hospital, he said, doctors aligned his fractured bones, nailed them and reinforced them with a metal.
The journalists said the incident had made them bolder and more determined to serve the public’s interests.
