Detectives from the Internal Affairs Unit (IAU) arrested Karen Police Station Commander (OCS) Purity Kobia for allegedly stealing and selling a motor vehicle.
Kobia was arrested on Friday, April 5, 2024, for allegedly auctioning a Mazda Demio model vehicle that had been detained at her police station.
Her arrest came after the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) approved charges levelled against her by IAU.
The unit had been investigating a complaint filed against Kobia over the irregular release of a complainant’s motor vehicle from her station.
“The vehicle, a Mazda Demio registration number KCR 526R, had been detained at the station after it was involved in an accident in October 2021 but was released illegally and sold in 2023 through a public auction and without following due process,” a statement from ODPP read in part.
According to the statement, the vehicle owned by the complainant Siama Rahma and valued at Ksh600,000, was disposed of for only Ksh50,000 under the orders of the OCS.
The IAU has been investigating the matter since Rahma filed a complaint with it and forwarded the file to the ODPP for directions after ascertaining its logical conclusion.
Following the conclusion of investigations, the ODPP through the IAU in February 2024 granted the OCS 30 days to compensate the complainant.
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The directive was given to Kobia and her accomplices failure to which they would be charged.
They were to face charges with five counts including abuse of office, stealing a motor vehicle, and conspiracy to commit a felony.
“Get back to this office at the lapse of the 30 days to confirm settlement of the matter or charging of the suspects,” directed the ODPP.
OCS Arrested
The officer was expected to appear before court on March 4, 2024, after the lapse of 30 days but did not show up which led to her arrest after Detectives from the IAU trailed her and booked her at Capitol Hill police station.
However, the OCS requested the ODPP to be set free, claiming she was too sick to take the plea.
She was later released on a Ksh10,000 cash bail and is expected in court on April 17, where she is expected to take a plea alongside the auctioneer who sold the vehicle.
The vehicle in question is currently detained at Capitol Hill police station, Nairobi as an exhibit.
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Rahma while reporting the matter said she had made multiple attempts to recover her vehicle after it was detained.
She revealed that she was however asked to pay an amount she couldn’t raise until July 2022, when she later noticed her car was missing at the station.
Complainant spots car
In addition, Rahma reported that she went on to spot her car being driven by an officer in Nairobi around mid-2023.
It was upon spotting it that she reported the matter to traffic officers who were on duty in the area.
She was then referred to the Kilimani police station by the officers to avail her ownership documents.
At the station, however, she said calls were made to the OCS, and the car was granted to the officer, and she was banned from going back to the station.
According to her statement, further attempts to recover the vehicle were futile as the OCS and the Inspector have since avoided her calls and frustrated her efforts.
This forced her to file an official complaint against the station with the IAU in November 2023 who launched investigations into the matter.
