Kenyan officer arrested for shooting unarmed civilian

The man was shot at close range during protests over a blogger’s death in police custody

A Kenyan police officer has been arrested over the shooting of an unarmed civilian during recent protests in the capital, Nairobi, sparked by the death of a blogger in custody, a security official has announced.

Muchiri Nyaga, the spokesperson for the National Police Service, said the authority had noted Tuesday’s incident with “great concern.”

“Following this incident, the Inspector-General National Police Service ordered for the immediate arrest and arraignment in court of the involved officer. The said police officer has since been arrested,” Nyaga said in a statement.

The Associated Press reported that its journalist in the East African country witnessed an officer, who had concealed his face with a mask, shoot an unarmed man at close range with what appeared to be a shotgun. The National Police Service later confirmed that the officer had used an anti-riot shotgun.

According to AP, the man is believed to have been a street vendor caught in a confrontation with two security personnel while standing on a sidewalk in Nairobi. One of the policemen reportedly shot him in the head as he walked away. He was taken to Kenya’s main public referral hospital for treatment, along with at least ten others injured during the demonstrations, the outlet added.

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Protests erupted in Kenya following the death of blogger and teacher Albert Ojwang earlier this month, after he was arrested for allegedly defaming Deputy Police Chief Eliud Lagat on social media.

Local media reports suggest that Ojwang, 31, was taken into custody on June 7 in Kakoth village, Homa Bay County, following a complaint filed under the Computer Misuse and Cybercrime Act. He was later transferred nearly 400km to Nairobi’s Central Police Station. Two days after his arrest, on June 8, he was found unconscious in his cell and later died at Mbagathi Referral Hospital.

The authorities initially claimed Ojwang committed suicide by hitting his head against a cell wall, but an independent autopsy found his injuries pointed to assault. Two senior officers and a CCTV technician, who had been called in to dismantle surveillance equipment at the police station, have been arrested in the case.

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Last week, Kenyan President William Ruto said the blogger’s death “in the hands of the police” is “heartbreaking and unacceptable.”

On Tuesday, riot police fired tear gas to clear the streets as demonstrators marched in Nairobi over Ojwang’s death. The marches also turned violent when unidentified motorcyclists attacked protesters, snatching phones and bags in an attempt to disperse them, according to Reuters and AP.

Kenya has a history of violent protests. Last year, dozens were killed during a wave of nationwide demonstrations against a controversial finance bill aimed at raising $2.7 billion in revenue to service government debt.