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Protesters in Kilifi re-arrested despite court release orders

Mombasa County residents take part in 'Occupy Parliament' protests, against the Finance Bill on June 19, 2024. (Photo: Farhiya Hussein/EV)

By Lucy Mumbi | Thursday, July 4, 2024

The group, consisting of approximately ten individuals, had initially appeared before the court on Wednesday to be charged,

Several protesters who were recently released by the Chief Magistrate Court in Kilifi after facing charges of unlawful gatherings and related offences during the anti-government demonstrations have been re-arrested.

The group, consisting of approximately ten individuals, had initially appeared before the court on Wednesday to be charged, before being granted release orders.

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Sofia Rajab, a human rights lawyer based in Kilifi, expressed frustration with the unfolding events, stressing the sequence of events that led to the re-arrests.

“So the police filed a miscellaneous application seeking to detain the suspects for 10 days to allow for investigations. We anticipated this would happen. They added other protesters who were arrested the night before - we only knew seven minutes before the hearing when we were served,” she said on X.

Rajab recounted the tense moments after court proceedings, where the released protesters faced another ordeal.

“We represented all of them. And not only did we kill it, we embarrassed them and they felt some type of way. Now, we leave court happy taking selfies, and an IO (Investigating Officer) calls the now-released persons to collect confiscated items (phones, bike, etc),” she said.

“The lawyers advised against this because a group of DCI officers were lurking in the corner and it looked suspicious. We told them to go home and come back another day, as the material items were not worth their freedom. But they trusted the police.”

She continued by saying, “As soon as they enter the DCI office...handcuffs. They claim that the Court did not order their release. Meanwhile, it was around 5 pm, and the order was yet to be extracted, but the Court staff made sure to stay behind until the order was typed, stamped, and signed. By then, DCI vanished,” she noted.

Rajab emphasised that while they await further information on the charges, lawyers in Kilifi are zealously defending the arrested protesters.

This follows the release of all 187 protesters, including children, who were apprehended during Tuesday's anti-government protests.

Law Society of Kenya (LSK) president Faith Odhiambo noted that the apprehended adults were each given a bond of Sh50,000 and will be released after providing details of their families and relatives.

They were presented before the Milimani Law Courts on Wednesday, facing various charges.

“The court has granted each of the children arrested a personal bond of Sh10,000 and has ordered that they be held at Capitol Hill police station separate from the adults as they provide details of their parents in accordance with the bond terms,” she wrote on X.

The court further directed the police to provide details of all arrested persons by 10 am to address the tendency of frustrating release processes even after court orders are issued.