Nairobi Central Police Station OCS Samson Talaam arrested over Albert Ojwang's death
His arrest brings the number of individuals detained in connection with the death of Ojwang, to three.
The Officer Commanding Station (OCS) at Nairobi Central Police Station, Samson Talaam, has been arrested after a day-long manhunt that ended in Eldoret, the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) has confirmed.
His arrest brings the number of individuals detained in connection with the death of Albert Ojwang, a blogger and teacher, to three.
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Ojwang died under suspicious circumstances while in police custody, an incident that has triggered public outrage and renewed scrutiny of police conduct.
The DCI has stated that investigations into Ojwang’s death are ongoing, with the possibility of further arrests as detectives work to establish the full facts of the case.
Investigators pursuing him alleged that he had fled in an attempt to evade capture.
They further stated that he had switched off his mobile phone on Thursday as officers closed in on him.
He was eventually located, arrested, and handed over to the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) for further processing.
In an official statement issued Friday evening, IPOA Director and CEO Elema Halake confirmed Talaam’s arrest and outlined key developments in the case.
The case has sparked national outrage, with Kenyans demanding accountability after initial police statements claimed Ojwang died at the hospital.
However, fresh findings by the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) now confirm that Ojuang died while being held in the cells at Central Police Station.
In a detailed update, IPOA’s Chief Executive Officer, Elema Halake, said that contrary to the police narrative, forensic investigations and post-mortem results point to custodial death resulting from injuries inflicted while Ojwang was in detention.
"The deceased died while in custody at Nairobi's Central police station cells,” IPOA said.
Elema revealed that a post-mortem conducted on June 10 found that Ojwang died from head injuries caused by blunt force trauma, neck compression, and widespread bruising.
These injuries, Halake said, ruled out suicide or natural causes as the cause of death.
"A post-mortem conducted on June 10 established that Ojwang died from head trauma caused by blunt force, neck compression, and multiple bruises, ruling out suicide as the cause of death," the statement read.
IPOA investigators also uncovered evidence suggesting an attempted cover-up.
The CCTV system in the OCS's office had been interfered with. The DVR's power cable was found disconnected, and forensic analysis showed that storage discs were reformatted just hours before the death was reported.
The late Ojwang was allegedly linked to controversial online posts under the username Pixel Pioneer.
He was arrested on June 7 in Homa Bay county by DCI officers investigating online posts allegedly targeting Deputy Inspector General Eliud Lagat and transferred to Nairobi and booked at Central Police Station that evening.
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