Albert Ojwang's murder: Police officer paid technician Sh3,000 after request to delete CCTV footage
The technician told the officers that such deletion was not possible without formatting the drive, an action that would erase all stored footage and reset the system entirely.
A technician has disclosed that officers at Central Police Station summoned him and requested assistance in deleting CCTV footage, which showed finals moments of teacher Albert Ojwang, who died while in police custody.
Eastleigh Voice has established that the technician was arrested at his home in Saika on a Friday, becoming the second suspect in a case now under close scrutiny by the Internal Affairs Unit (IAU) and the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA).
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According to police records, the technician had been contracted in 2024 by a woman to install CCTV cameras at the station.
He explained that the system comprised 25 cameras and a DVR (Digital Video Recorder) with a 30-day storage capacity. The coverage included the report office, both floors of the building, cell corridors, and the parking yard. He added that he was occasionally called in for maintenance.
On June 8 at 6:22 am, he received a phone call from a police officer urging him to come to the station urgently. Upon arrival, he was taken to the office housing the DVR system and asked to delete footage recorded on June 6 and 7.
The technician told the officers that such deletion was not possible without formatting the drive, an action that would erase all stored footage and reset the system entirely.
He stated that he did not delete any footage but was nonetheless handed Sh3,000 by a senior officer.
A view outside Nairobi’s Central Police Station. (Photo: Courtesy)
The following day, at 6:28 am, the same officer allegedly called him again, this time instructing him to bring a new hard drive and warning him not to wear any clothing that would identify him as a technician.
As most shops were still closed at the time, the technician arrived without the requested hard drive, only to discover that the DVR had already been accessed and tampered with. He was told to return later.
At 12:07 pm, the officer called once more to follow up, but the technician said he was working in Westlands at the time. The officer then informed him that his contact details had been passed on to an IPOA investigator seeking assistance in retrieving the footage.
When contacted by the IPOA officer, the technician said he referred the matter to a colleague due to other work commitments and growing concern over the nature of the case.
Investigators believe at least three more suspects are still at large, with some reportedly in hiding.
So far, 23 individuals have recorded statements, including 17 police officers from Central and Mawego Police Stations as well as officers attached to the DCI.
On Thursday, IPOA chairperson Issack Hassan told the National Assembly’s Security Committee that system logs confirmed the DVR drives were replaced and formatted on June 8 at 07:23:29 and 07:23:48.
“Someone was called to disable a particular section of the system, but he insisted he could only shut down the entire system,” Issack told MPs.
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