Senior AP officer shot dead in Kayole

A senior Administration Police officer has been shot dead in Nairobi.

The superintendent of police was shot dead on Wednesday morning near his residence in Mihango, Kayole.

The officer was a doctor attached to the Administration Police headquarters.

Nairobi County Police Commander Japheth Koome said the officer, who could not be named because his family had not been informed of his death, was heading home from work.

“He was accosted by an unknown number of gunmen, who shot him in the left side of his chest, killing him on the spot,” Mr Koome said.

He said the gunmen were using a hired vehicle, which they abandoned at the scene after the 3.40am shooting.

“We got the information from residents who heard gunshots from a location they could not immediately point out.

“When officers went to the scene, they found the two cars, with the officer’s body inside his car,” Mr Koome said, adding that the suspects may have escaped on foot.

It was not yet clear whether the officer was armed. Mr Koome said no firearm was found on his body or inside his car.

Crime scene investigation officers visited the site and dusted the two vehicles for fingerprints.

They also collected three spent cartridges, which will be subjected to ballistic examinations.

The windscreen of the slain officer’s vehicle was smashed.

The hired car, a white saloon with registration number KBA 309 E, was abandoned in front of the officer's vehicle.