Police are in pursuit of the masterminds of the abduction of 29 people across the country since the Gen Z protests, Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja has said.
In a session with MPs on Wednesday, the police chief said 57 Kenyans have been abducted or kidnapped since the nationwide anti-government protests.
According to Kanja, 22 victims were found alive, six were found murdered while 29 are still in the hands of abductors.
The police boss was, however, quick to delink police officers from the strings of abductions and kidnappings that followed the youthled protests.
“Police don’t abduct people, police don’t kidnap people. Police conduct arrests and detain the culprits in lawful custody,” Kanja told MPs.
“Notably, arrests of public figures like Morara Kebaso, Jimi Wanjigi, Macharia Gaitho, among others, by NPS officers was sensationalised and reported as abductions/kidnappings. Nonetheless, a majority of youths were released by courts while the cases of others are still pending in court.”
The police boss further told lawmakers sitting at the National Assembly’s Committee on Administration and National Security that more police officers were injured than protesters during the youthled demonstrations.
According Kanja, 495 injuries were recorded among police officers compared to 347 injuries to civilians.
This means 48 more officers were injured than the demonstrators during the month-long street battle that climaxed in the invasion of Parliament on June 25.
“At least 1,552 protesters were arrested and others captured on camera commuting offences were being pursued,” Kanja told the National Assembly’s Committee on Administration and internal Security.
The police boss was accompanied by Deputy Inspector General in charge of National Police Service Eliud Lagat and Deputy Director of Criminal Investigations John Onyango.
The IG also told the committee chaired by Narok West MP Gabriel Tongoyo that 42 fatalities were recorded during the period.
“National Police Service has since recorded 57 cases of kidnappings and abductions that were reported countrywide from June,” he said.
Kanja was appearing before the Tongoyo-led committee regarding kidnappings and abductions occurring in the country.
On the Eastleigh murders, Onyango said the suspect is of Ethiopian descent who used backdoor toobtain Kenya’s identification card.
The 24 year-old Hashim Dagane Muhumed, according to Onyango, killed one of his three wives in Ethiopia before crossing into the country where he obtained an ID.
Police say the suspect does not speak Swahili. The suspect is also linked to the murder of a woman whose mutilated body was discovered at Lang’ata Cemetery.
Onyango also ruled out foul play in the murder of former Well Fargo human resource manager Willis Ayieko revealing it was a case of robbery.
Ayieko’s mutilated body was discovered on October 23 at Mungowere stream in Yala, Siaya county. He was killed after attending a burial.
Onyango said the probe into the murder is at an advanced stage and the sleuths have recorded statement from a Kisumu boda boda rider who carried the three main suspects from Kisumu to Gem.
“The boda boda rider confessed everything, he carried the three pillion passengers from Kisumu to Gem.. and by midnight they called him to pick them and took them to Kisumu where he took them to ATMs and M-Pesa, all these were corroborated by CCTV footages from Kisumu,” Onyango said.
“This was pure robbery.”
