A police officer at Kimala Matta police post in Taita Taveta shot and killed his senior before turning the gun on himself on Thursday morning.
Constable Felix Koskei was returning his official firearm to the armoury at around 7.30am after night duty, when he shot Corporal David Kazungu.
Kazungu was shot on the right hand side of the head and the bullet exited on the left side. He was also shot in the chest and left upper leg. He died on the spot.
Koskei then shot himself on the chin and was rushed to Taveta Subcounty Hospital in serious condition. He later succumbed to the gunshot injuries.
His colleagues said the reason for the shooting was not immediately established. They said the two were known to be “officers of few words”.
In another case in Kamukunji on Thursday, a police officer went beserk and fired four rounds before he was finally disarmed and taken to Nairobi West Hospital.
The Kamukunji officer attached to undercover duties within Muthurwa/Landhies road started experiencing hallucinations in the morning as they were being addressed by their seniors.
He then took off at high speed, claiming his life was in danger as 'some unknown people wanted to kill him'.
Kamukunji station commander mobilised a team to track him down and disarm him.
His two colleagues spotted him along Harambee Avenue and managed to talk to him to establish what the problem was.
He suddenly removed a Ceska pistol loaded with 15 bullets and fired four times.
As a result of the struggle, he injured his left hand just above the wrist.
“He was disarmed and escorted to Kamukunji police station. No cartridge was recovered due to prevailing circumstances. The officer appeared to be mentally disturbed and hence escorted to Nairobi West Hospital for treatment,” police said.
Officials link such incidences to mental trauma.
About 60 police officers die by suicide every year due to social, financial and workplace pressures.
A survey shows that 90 per cent of police officers are experiencing challenges related to alcoholism with 50 per cent requiring psychosocial support to come out of drunkenness.
Another survey by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and National Police Service (NPS) conducted among members of the service found that 61 per cent of the officers were regular consumers of alcohol.
Some officers use alcohol as a way to cope with the daily stress of their job, or as a way to self-medicate for depression, anxiety or post-traumatic stress disorder.
On October 23 last year, a cop went berserk and shot dead his two colleagues. He injured two others before turning the gun on himself at Moyale police station.
Constable Lawrence Kumber first attacked his colleague Noah Odero by hitting him with a stone.
When his colleague who had just picked up his firearm from the armoury fell down, he disarmed him and rushed to the armoury with the firearm.
At the armoury, he shot Corporal Francis Kokwe, killing him on the spot. The officer shot another officer on the left shoulder.
After the shootings, the officer went to his house, locked himself inside before shooting himself on the chin.
He died on the spot. Police said the motive of the killing has yet to be established.
Former President Uhuru Kenyatta had noted that mental health was a real problem and urged police officers to seek help.
“If you see you have a problem, please look for someone to talk to. You will find a solution. There is nothing that cannot be resolved. We are ready to work with you,” he said.
Dr Frank Njenga, the chairman of Chiromo Health Group and the presidential adviser on mental health, also warned that exposure of police officers was not like what ordinary people face.
"The risks they are exposed to place them at a higher risk of mental illness. Frontline officers for instance who respond fast to distress calls are exposed to PTSD,” he said.
Police headquarters has also said the service has adequate plans to support officers adding that in special cases, deployment and transfer of officers will consider such factors like the health of the officers.
In July last year, a police officer who had earlier been captured on video in full uniform staggering along the road died by suicide just a day after the video went viral.
The body of Constable Harrison Mugo was found hanging inside an old police canteen that got burnt down a few years ago.
Earlier in February, Constable Anthony Mwangi Njuguna, 29, shot his pregnant wife 16 times, killing her on the spot, before turning the gun on himself in Suna West Migori county.
The shooting took place in the presence of the couple’s two-year-old child who was found unhurt.
On January 8 last year, Constable Jacob Masha turned the gun on himself inside his house at Makupa police station.
On December 9, 2021, another police officer left behind an emotional suicide note before taking his life.
The officer based at Changamwe police station said he was suffering from depression and was unable to clear some debts that pushed him to the extreme.
