Nakuru families in anguish as suspects die in custody

On February 7, Shadrack Njuguna had a heated altercation with his wife, culminating in a physical fight that led to his subsequent arrest following a report made by the woman to the police.

Following the arrest, Njuguna, 29, was detained at Kikopey Police Post in Nakuru County pending a court appearance.

However, shock and disbelief engulfed his family after they learnt that his lifeless body was inside the police cells.

According to a relative, the family learnt of their kin's demise when Njuguna failed to appear in court.

A post-mortem examination later unveiled that Njuguna died of strangulation, raising suspicions of foul play within the confines of police custody.

“The Independent Policing Oversight Authority took over the matter and are now conducting investigations. We want to know who strangled our kin while in police custody instead of letting the law take its course. We want justice over his death,” the relative, who did not wish to be named, told nation.africa.

In another harrowing incident on September 12, 2023, Danson Kahuria bid farewell to his family at his Kiptangwany home in Gilgil Constituency, promising to return after a day's work on the farm.

But little did the family of the 21-year-old casual labourer anticipate that it would be their last interaction with him alive as they later learnt his body was lying at Kiptangwany police post cells after he allegedly committed suicide.

His mother, Ms Milka Wanjiru, vividly recalls the chilling arrival of police officers, accompanied by the area chief, later in the evening.

The abrupt summoning to the police station left the family grappling with uncertainty.

At the station, the devastating news of Kahuria’s alleged suicide while in police custody was shared with the family.

However, discrepancies in the accounts of his demise emerged, prompting Kahuria's father, John Gitau, to question the narrative provided by the authorities that he had died by suicide after he was arrested earlier in the day.

“My son’s lifeless body was lying on the ground. When I looked around, I never saw where he could have hanged himself. There was a small rope the size of a shoelace and yet we were told he committed suicide," Mr Gitau lamented, expressing skeptism over the circumstances of his son's tragic death.

Mr Gitau claims they were not allowed to escort the body to the Nakuru Teaching and Referral Hospital mortuary.

Instead, they were taken home on motorbikes, adding that the officers blocked them from talking to their neighbours.

Shockingly, a post-mortem conducted at the same hospital revealed Kahuria died of Asphyxia caused by manual strangulation.

Similarly, Moses Nyamori's life took a tragic turn on June 14, 2023, when officers from Menengai Police Station arrested him for allegedly vandalising his father's property valued at Sh13,000.

Since it was not the first time the 34-year-old had stolen from his father, the father decided to call the cops on his son and put him in custody to correct his wayward ways.

Nyamori was arraigned in a Nakuru court on charges of maliciously damaging property, which he denied.

The court directed that he be remanded at the Nakuru GK Prison awaiting hearing of his bond application, further directing he be presented in court on September 20.

But on September 11, his family received the distressing news of his untimely demise while in prison custody, shrouded in conflicting accounts surrounding the circumstances of his death.

According to Nyamori’s sister, Sabina Maroro, an officer identified as Mr Githinji told the family their brother was rushed to the Nakuru Level Five Hospital after he started experiencing difficulties in breathing.

She claimed that an inside source informed the family that Nyamori died two days before he was rushed to the hospital, while the prison maintained that he died while receiving treatment.

However, a report from the hospital indicated that he was brought in dead on September 8 around 8:57pm with a BID number 04901 with OB No 126/8/9/2023.

A post-mortem conducted by government pathologist Dr Titus Ngulungu, in the presence of the family, revealed that Nyamori died of strangulation.

“The victim died due to lack of oxygen in lungs, brain as he had hyoid bone fracture and congested liver as a result of being strangled," stated the pathologist in a report.

The families of the three men are among tens of families who have lost their loved ones while in police detention or custody, sparking outcry and leaving them with unanswered questions.

In an interview, Nakuru County Police Commander Samuel Ndanyi assured that investigations into the incidents were underway, albeit leaving many questions unanswered.

Nakuru County Human Rights Network Director David Kuria decried the escalating cases of extrajudicial killings in Nakuru, condemning the blatant violation of human rights.

"It is now becoming a common trend and it is sad that we are losing people in the hands of police officers," Mr Kuria lamented, highlighting the need for urgent intervention to address the alarming trend.

The Independent Medico-Legal Unit (IMLU) echoed similar concerns, citing a surge in torture-related violations, including extrajudicial killings, as evidenced by their recent report.

The September 2023 report noted that in cases of torture and related violations, the country recorded 250 more cases compared to 232 cases recorded in 2022, bringing the number to 482 by August 2023.

Out of these 482 cases, 351 were torture and inhumane or degrading treatment or punishment, while 128 were extrajudicial executions, and three were enforced disappearances, the lobby reported.

Further, the majority of the victims were young male adults between the ages of 18-35 years who recorded 317 cases.

As investigations continue, families of the victims are grappling with the loss of their loved ones as the community at large grapples with the unsettling reality of custodial deaths plaguing Nakuru.

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