Police seize Miguna’s car, backtrack after tweet
Controversial lawyer Miguna Miguna Lawyer who is once again facing off with the government ahead of his return to Kenya on Tuesday. PHOTO | FILE | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- He posted that the car was seized at 12.30pm by police officers in plain clothes, who were using a civilian car.
- Mr Miguna said he found it puzzling that the officers said they did not know the Mercedes car belonged to him.
- The lawyer has adopted the same combative tone he has had the last two times he attempted to return to Kenya.
Lawyer Miguna Miguna is once again facing off with the government ahead of his return to Kenya on Tuesday.
His latest battle is to do with his car, which was seized by government operatives Saturday in Nairobi’s South B.
But police backtracked after he complained on social media.
He posted that the car was seized at 12.30pm by police officers in plain clothes, who were using a civilian car.
The car was with Ferdinand Ogumah when the five heavily-armed officers pounced.
It was then taken to Nairobi Area Police Station.
RECORDED STATEMENT
Talking to Sunday Nation via e-mail last evening, Mr Miguna said Mr Ogumah was forced to record a statement.
“They demanded the original copy of the log book from the person who I had purchased the vehicle from in Mombasa. They warned Ferdinand not to contact that person and ordered the person to deliver the original log book to them directly. I found that unusual and contacted my lawyers,” said Mr Miguna.
The controversial author and politician added that the officer who commanded others during the seizure called Mr Ogumah shortly after Mr Miguna’s social media protest.
“I understand that following my publication of the information on my Twitter handle, [the commanding officer] contacted Mr Ogumah and stated that his ‘boss’ had called and directed that the vehicle be released to Ferdinand immediately,” said Mr Miguna. By the time of filing this report, Mr Ogumah said he was still at Nairobi Area police station.
PUZZLED
Mr Miguna said he found it puzzling that the officers said they did not know the Mercedes car belonged to him.
“Bear in mind that they had in their possession the same vehicle for a week after they violently broke into my home using explosives and abducted me on February 2, 2018. They had also stopped one of my friends in Kitengela with the same vehicle,” he said.
“It is a pattern of behaviour. They seem to be tracking the vehicle electronically, which suggests that they must have installed an electronic monitoring device on it in February 2018. If this was meant to scare me, it has steeled me even more. I’m not scared.”
The lawyer has adopted the same combative tone he has had the last two times he attempted to return to Kenya but got deported to Canada.
“There is absolutely no law that compels a citizen to produce a passport upon entry into his or her country of citizenship,” he says on a pinned post on his Facebook account.
He adds that when he lands in Kenya, it should be the duty of Kenyan authorities to “obey the multiple court orders”.
