Police are investigating the death of their colleague who had been missing from his workplace for three days in Nairobi.
Constable Geoffrey Kinzi Indire, 35, worked at the Jomo
Kenyatta International Airport for the past year.
He had however not reported to work since October 1
prompting his seniors to check on him in his house.
He was also not responding to his calls, which raised an
alarm among his seniors and colleagues.
The officers found his house locked from the inside and on
checking through the window they saw him lying on the bed unresponsive.
This forced them to cut the window grill to access the
scene.
The body had no visible injuries and was moved to the
mortuary pending autopsy and other investigations.
Police said they are yet to know the cause of the death.
They are investigating among others suicide and sudden
death, which could have been triggered by his health condition.
Suicide cases have been on the rise in the service and
officials say this is linked to their stress.
Dozens of police officers have died as a result of suicide
or killed many in a trend that is attributed to stress at work.
As part of efforts to address the trend, police authorities
have launched counselling services and the National Police Service Commission
has established a unit and staffed it to attend to their demanding situation.
The counselling unit will, among other things, evaluate,
design and lead an outreach programme that helps prevent mental health and
substance abuse.
At least three suicide cases involving police officers are
recorded every month.
Officials say police are generally on the receiving end of
all community problems.
They are expected to maintain law and order in very
difficult situations, besides putting their lives at risk.
Over the years, a spike in deaths in the service has been
linked to trauma.
They include deaths by gun.
The World Health Organisation says such cases are attributed to joblessness, death, academic failures or pressures, legal difficulties and financial difficulties.
Other reasons are bullying, previous suicide attempts,
history of suicide in a family, alcoholism and substance misuse, depression and
bipolar disorder.
WHO rates suicide as a serious global public health issue
that is among the top 20 leading causes of death worldwide.