Why prominent suspects have preferred police cells

When State House digital strategist Dennis Itumbi was arraigned over the fake letter alleging a plot to kill Deputy President William Ruto last month, he made an unusual request.

Mr Itumbi asked the court to order that he is detained at Muthaiga, Gigiri or Kileleshwa police stations “for his own safety”.

In an affidavit, he claimed his life would be in jeopardy should he be sent to the Kamukunji police cells and accused detectives of turning a blind eye to a video recording he said would prove the assassination plot.

“Owing to the said material that I have, and which the investigators know I have, and which they (investigators) desperately want to avoid, they want me confined at Kamukunji police station where hard-core criminals are kept,” said Mr Itumbi.

The preferred police cells Mr Itumbi listed brought to the fore concerns on why prominent persons in the country seem to be detained at particular stations whenever arrests are made.

A week before Mr Itumbi’s detention, a Milimani court had ordered the police to detain Starehe MP Charles Njagua at Kileleshwa Police Station for a day before it could issue its directions on whether to release the legislator on bond. The MP had been charged with incitement to violence over remarks said to be xenophobic.

'SPECIAL SUSPECTS'

Following the detention order, a curious citizen took to social media to question the choice of police stations that politicians, prominent and influential persons get detained in whenever they are arraigned.

In a tweet, Alhaj Adan Wachu asked if there exists an unwritten rule on where to detain ‘special suspects’.

“Are there specific police stations to remand a special category of suspects in this country? Whenever a big fish, big scammer, big fraudster, big politician or any person of substance is arrested, they are remanded in posh police stations: Muthaiga, Muthangari, Kileleshwa. Why?” Mr Adan posed.

The police had requested to hold Mr Njagua, popularly known as Jaguar, at Kamukunji but his defence lawyers countered arguing that it was best to detain him at Muthaiga.

The lawyers claimed the MP’s supporters were likely to storm the Kamukunji police station and cause commotion similar to the furor they created at the Nairobi Area police station where he was held moments after his arrest.

'ATTRACTIVE CELLS'

Other prominent Kenyans that have been held in the preferred police stations include controversial businessman Paul Kobia, former Nairobi governor Evans Kidero, city lawyer Assa Nyakundi, televangelist James Ng'ang'a, among others.

Ordinary Kenyans have questioned whether the authorities give preferential treatment or it is the state of these police stations in upmarket areas that draw the influential suspects.

After visiting various police cells within Nairobi County, Nation has established that a good number of stations in upscale areas are well maintained.

At Muthaiga Police Station for example, the cells have in-built toilets as opposed to the bucket-toilet common in other police jails.

Its proximity to the affluent neighbourhoods of Runda and Muthaiga, where a good number of prominent Kenyans live, has also made it a preferred station. A police officer told the Nation that some of the high-profile suspects who have spent nights in the cells claimed they felt like they were within their neighbourhood.

“The suspects will also request to be detained at particular stations based on the stories they have heard from those of their friends who have been detained before. At times it’s all based on referrals but in other cases, the court decides where the suspect will be detained,” said the officer.

In some cases, detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations request to have suspects detained at Muthaiga given its proximity to the DCI Kiambu Road headquarters, he added.

INHABITABLE

The state of the Muthaiga cells stands in sharp contrast to the conditions seen in other police stations. The cells are poorly ventilated, stink of urine, the floors are stained and crowded with unkempt suspects.

Kamukunji for instance, is among such. The police station is located near the populous Muthurwa market, the country bus station, and Majengo slums. Suspects held there are arrested for a variety of reasons from petty to violent crimes. It is also one of the most dreaded in Nairobi with tales of beatings for the "newcomer".

Its inhabitable conditions makes it unattractive to suspects.