Deputy party leader of the Democracy for Citizens Party (DCP), Cleophas Malala, has accused police officers in Kakamega of assaulting his driver.
In a statement on June 9, Malala alleged that officers led by Kakamega Officer Commanding Police Division (OCPD), along with three other uniformed officers, trailed his vehicle and forced it to a stop.
Upon discovering that Malala was not inside, the officers allegedly commanded the driver to proceed to an undisclosed location.
“When he refused, they assaulted him so severely using a gun pointer that he was left profusely bleeding,” Malala said.
Rather than facilitating immediate medical assistance, the driver was allegedly detained at the Kakamega Central Police Station for several hours.
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Cleopas Malala Driver Beaten
According to Malala, the driver was only taken to Kakamega General Hospital after the prolonged detention and only under armed escort.
The DCP official also claimed that the officers attempted to destroy photographic evidence stored on the driver’s phone in what he termed a “crude attempt to conceal their actions,” though he asserted that the attempt was unsuccessful.
“This is unconscionable brutality by those sworn to protect us. Our nation sinks deeper into lawlessness when officers become perpetrators,” Malala said. “We will not be intimidated; we are formally filing a complaint with the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA).”
The IPOA, an independent government agency, is tasked with investigating complaints against members of the National Police Service and ensuring accountability.
Police Brutality in Kenya
This comes a day after popular X influencer Albert Ojwang died under mysterious circumstances while in police custody.
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According to reports by his family, Albert Ojwang was arrested by officers believed to be attached to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI).
He was allegedly arrested in connection to a series of X posts he made.
However, according to close friends and family, his name was never entered into the Occurrence Book (OB), which is an expected routine police procedure.
By Sunday morning, news broke that Ojwang was dead.
NPS has suspended officers who were on duty at the Central Police Station while Albert Ojwang was in custody.
“The National Police Service (NPS) wishes to inform the public that, following the tragic death of Mr. Albert Ojwang while in police custody at Central Police Station, Nairobi, and to ensure a thorough, impartial, and expeditious investigation by the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA), the Inspector General of the National Police Service has ordered the interdiction of the following officers with immediate effect,” read part of the statement.
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