A fresh twist in the murder of Meru blogger Daniel Muthiani popularly known as Sniper has emerged after Public Service Cabinet Secretary Moses Kuria linked the gruesome death to the profiling and stigmatization of youth in Mt Kenya region.
The CS blamed the gruesome murder to branding youth from the region as members of Mungiki sect and other outlawed gangs.
Notably, the controversial CS made the comments on his social media page in the early hours of December 29.
“The cold-blooded murder of Snipper is in line with the continued profiling and stigmatization of Mt Kenya youth, branding them as members of Mungiki and other outlawed gangs,” said Kuria.
Furthermore, according to Kuria such heinous acts should be attributed to the fall in the threshold of what is legit Humanitarian standards.
Kuria further went on to claim that the abduction and murder of Sniper is not something to be taken for granted.
Additionally, he went on to issue a warning to those responsible, “You will not get away with this. I will pursue this matter to the bitter end.”
Kuria Lauded and Criticized
There were mixed reactions from Kenyans online following Kuria’s remarks, with some lauding the CS for demanding justice.
“Kudos for demanding justice for the innocent young man. Our differences shouldn’t let us do such heinous acts. Justice for Sniper,” noted Eddy Nzomo on X.
On the other hand, Brian Ondego also lauded Kuria for his commitment asking him to replicate the same towards resolving a past similar incident.
Also Read: Fighting in Meru is a Hobby-Moses Kuria
“Thanks, CS, for the commitment. Kindly extend the same efforts towards resolving the death of Chris Msando and help his family get justice,” he said.
However, some users online went on to call out Kuria for his remarks, while questioning the time at which the CS made the remarks.
Nelson Amenya posed, “Its hard to believe a post made at 3.am in the morning on a Friday but what do I know?”
Another user furiously reacted noting that Kuria should not have made such comments, being a senior government official.
“You cannot be a senior government official and rant on social media like a helpless citizen. Enjoy your drink in peace,” noted Abdi Said.
ODPP Issues Statement
The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) clarified claims concerning the abduction and murder of blogger Sniper, following a public outcry.
Also Read: Uproar Over Murder of Popular Blogger
Through a press statement released on December 27, the ODPP confirmed that it had received social media reports to the effect a suspect was arrested for the abduction of sniper.
Notably, the reports claimed that the suspect was arrested but the ODPP did not give directions to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) on how to proceed with the case.
While defending itself the ODPP maintained that following the recovery of Sniper’s body, it directed the DCI to undertake investigations for the offence of murder.
Additionally, DCI was to submit the resultant inquiry file for perusal and further directions, according to the ODPP.
However, the ODPP maintained that it had not received the inquiry file into the offence of murder.
