South Mugirango Member of Parliament (MP) Silvanus Osoro has broken his silence over a pastor whose photo was among images of wanted individuals published by police.
MP Osoro in a statement on June 7 explained that the man identified as a clergy man was included in the list of wanted individuals after he was captured inside the National Assembly.
The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) had earlier included an image of the man in a long list of photos of individuals wanted for their involvement in unlawful activities during the recent Anti-Finance Bill 2024 protests.
However, the National Assembly Majority whip said that the pastor had visited him in parliament more than a week before the day of the protests.
He added that the man of God took photos and videos inside the parliament which could have been mistaken to be among those that were taken on the day of protests.
“Pastor Basweti Dennis visited me in parliament a month ago. I took him on a round tour of chambers as he took selfies and videos with excitement. He posted them on his Facebook page on the 10th of June 2024,” said Osoro.
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Osoro Clears Air on Wanted Pastor
According to Osoro, excited netizens during the day of the protests downloaded the said photos and videos of the pastor, later sharing them on the internet accompanied with hashtags ‘tumefika bunge‘.
The Majority whip maintained that this could have led to the police mistaking the video as a recent footage taken during protests, which in turn led to the pastor being among the wanted individuals.
Osoro at the same time noted that the man has since appeared before the DCI after his photo appeared among the list of wanted individuals.
“He has since appeared before the DCI and of course he will be cleared. If you have done NOTHING WRONG, do not fear the police. Just appear and explain yourself. That’s how it is,” added Osoro.
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DCI Publishes Photos of Suspects
Osoro’s clarification came as Kenyans online took to the social media to question why the pastor had been included in the list of wanted suspects while not being in parliament on the fateful day where protesters stormed in parliament.
DCI had earlier on Wednesday published photos of individuals wanted for their involvement in unlawful activities during the recent Anti-Finance Bill 2024 protests, further urging the suspects featured in the published images to surrender to the nearest police station for further police action.
The Directorate published 38 images in total, noting that they have been captured from CCTV footages in various buildings including Parliament, where the suspects were believed to have participated in unlawful activities.
“Any information regarding the whereabouts of the suspects can be reported confidentially to the anonymous #Fichuakwa DCI Hotline at 0800 722 203 or through the police hotlines 999, 911, or 112,” noted DCI
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