Dozens have been arrested after a police lorry was torched following a fatal accident near City Stadium, Nairobi.
A section of residents of Kaloleni area said that anti-riot police attacked and arrested dozens of locals following a fatal accident.
This was after a group of bodaboda riders attacked and torched a police lorry that was involved in the accident along Lusaka Road on Friday evening.
The police driver on board was beaten and seriously injured after the vehicle he had was involved in a fatal traffic accident along Lusaka Road.
The driver was racing in a police lorry when he knocked and killed a pedestrian near City Stadium.
Rowdy bodaboda riders and some pedestrians confronted the police driver with stones and twigs and badly damaged the vehicle before setting it on fire.
Witnesses said the incident happened at about 6 pm on Friday, August 9.
During the drama, the officer sustained injuries in the hand and back before he was rescued and rushed to hospital in stable condition.
The vehicle was damaged in the cabin and police uniforms among other items stolen from it.
An alarm was raised and anti-riot police sent to the area later in the night.
The team terrorised locals and arrested more than 200 people for questioning and in search for stolen items, locals alleged.
Police said no recovery has been made and the search for the stolen items is ongoing.
The body of the deceased man was moved to the mortuary pending identification and autopsy.
Those arrested were being detained at different police stations pending processing.
Their relatives flocked there seeking their release. They denied they committed the crimes.
A local said the attacks were committed by bodaboda riders who operate in the area.
“Some don’t even come from here. We were not involved in the attack on the police and burning of the vehicle,” one local who said her son was flushed from his house and detained said.
Police have warned against mob lynching and especially from riders who react with anger in such accident scenes.
The police say those arrested in such incidents will face serious charges.
Such cases have been on the rise amid calls on those involved in accidents to always involve police when necessary and avoid any form of rage.