At least two people were Thursday evening shot and seriously injured as police confronted a mob in a road rage incident along Thika Road, Nairobi.
The mob wanted to free a suspect who had been chased and arrested following an accident.
According to police, the suspect in question was a matatu driver who had been involved in a hit-and-run incident near the Kastemil area.
Two police officers were using a private car on the highway when the driver of the matatu hit the vehicle.
According to the officers, the matatu damaged their car on the right side before the driver sped off.
This prompted the officers from Kasarani police station who were in civilian clothes to chase it for a short while before blocking the road in an effort to arrest the driver.
It was then a crowd surged to the scene and claimed the officers were out to abduct the driver.
The officers said they introduced themselves as officers of the law and victims of a hit and run but the mob who included the passengers became rowdy threatening to stone them and burn their car.
They demanded the release of the driver, police said.
In an effort to scare the mob, one of the officers fired four rounds of ammunition into the air using his pistol.
It was then that two passengers who were in the matatu were shot and wounded.
The victims included a 62–year–old man who was hit on his left thigh nd a 42-year-old one who was hit on his left foot.
The two were rushed to St. Francis Hospital in stable condition as the mob scampered for their safety.
Police said the bus was removed from the scene before being processed, while the other was taken to Zimmerman police post pending further action.
Police say there is a growing trend of civil disobedience and obstruction to justice by mobs.
Such incidents happened in Embu and Nakuru amid fears there will be more such in the coming days.
In most cases, the mobs cite abduction as the reason they obstruct police from doing their work.
Police warn such cases are criminal and punishable.
Police on the ground and in operations have been asked to always identify themselves and explain their mission as part of efforts to spur confidence in the public.
