Inspector General of Police (IG) Koome has addressed claims of the National Police Service (NPS) blocking the burial of 12-year-old boy Kennedy Onyango who was shot in Rongai during the Anti-government protests.
Koome in a statement on Saturday, July 6 made clarifications following a botched burial earlier today, which came after the boy died having being fatally shot in unclear circumstances.
In his statement, IG Koome refuted the claims that police blocked the burial, revealing that the deceased’s body had been released to the mother days before the burial day.
“Contrary to the misleading reports circulating on social media that the National Police Service has stopped the burial of the late Kennedy Onyango in Mbita Constituency, we wish to clarify to the public that the body was released to the mother, Josinter Anyango Ochieng for burial on July 4, 2024,” read part of the statement.
According to Koome, the body was released after a post-mortem was carried out by Pathologist, Dr. Ndegwa P.M, with the autopsy report indicating that the boy died due to a single gunshot wound at a long range.
Kennedy Onyango Burial Blocked
The IG noted that the body was then moved to Mbita for burial following the report, adding that the funeral did not happen as a man claiming to be the boy’s biological father moved to court to stop it.
“The body was moved to Mbita for burial but upon arrival on July 5, 2024, one Denis Okinyi Abaga claiming to be the biological father of the boy appeared with a court order stopping the burial after he demanded to bury the boy,” added the police boss.
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IG Koome further added that apparently, the Civil Suit No. 0028 of 2024 filed at Mbita Law Courts ordered the police to move the body to Suba Sub-County Hospital Funeral Home for preservation, prompting the OCS Mbita Police Station to comply with the order.
The NPS has appealed to members of the public to remain calm as this matter regarding family burial dispute is resolved before a competent Court of Law.
This clarification by Koome comes after Josinter Anyango, the mother to the 12-year-old, pleaded with President William Ruto to intervene after a court halted the burial.
Anyango in a video shared earlier by Haki Africa CEO and activist Hussein Khalid, begged President Ruto to intervene and help her access the body of her son.
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The distraught mother had confirmed that the body of the son was taken to a nearby mortuary following the court order.
“You have all the powers. After God, you are the second most powerful person in Kenya. Those who have taken my baby are under your authority. Ruto, return my baby,” she painfully stated.
Family disputes over body
The dramatic turn of events occurred following a dispute between Onyango’s family and the man claiming to be his biological father.
Denis Okinyi surfaced laying claim on the body of the boy, stating that he only learnt of his son’s death through social media.
Okinyi while talking to the press further said that he had not yet been allowed to view the body of his son, who he said he raised on his own in Suba Constituency.
Additionally, the man who had divorced Kennedy’s mother before moving on to live separately demanded for the boy to be buried in Suba, where he was born and raised.
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