Police accused of using inmates to torture Albert Ojwang, three arrested – IPOA
They are expected to be charged alongside the Officer Commanding Station (OCS), Samson Taalam, who is detained at Lang’ata Police Station.
Three more suspects have been arrested in connection with the murder of Albert Ojwang, who died while in custody at Nairobi’s Central Police Station.
According to the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA), the three suspects, Gin Ammitou Abwao, Collins Karani Ireri, and Brian Mwaniki Njue, had been detained at the station the night Ojwang was brought in from Homa Bay.
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Although the trio had been released shortly after the incident, they were taken back into custody on Sunday. Each is currently being held at a different police station (Kilimani, Muthangari, and Kileleshwa) ahead of their court appearance on Monday.
They are expected to be charged alongside the Officer Commanding Station (OCS), Samson Taalam, who is detained at Lang’ata Police Station.
Their lawyer claims the three were previously detained under a miscellaneous application for five days before being freed without facing charges.
As investigations progress, IPOA has obtained key CCTV recordings from within the police station.
However, authorities believe that some of the footage may have been deliberately altered to conceal crucial evidence. The oversight body is now analysing over 36 hours of surveillance material to reconstruct the timeline and events surrounding Ojwang’s final moments.
Two other officers caught on camera transporting Ojwang to Mbagathi Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival, have yet to be apprehended. One has been identified as Deputy OCS Samuel Ng’ang’a, who was reportedly on duty the night the incident occurred.
On Thursday, Police Constable James Mukhwana from Central Police Station was arrested and is currently at Capitol Hill police awaiting a ruling on whether the court will allow the application by IPOA to detain him for 21 working days or not.
According to IPOA, preliminary investigations have revealed that Mukhwana, together with other persons who are still at large, was likely involved in the planning and the execution of the brutal and fatal assault of the deceased inside the cells at Central Police Station.
The investigating officer has said that Mukhwana was the one in custody of the cell keys on the day of the incident, and it is believed he may help with investigations.
"Investigations also revealed that Mukhwana and other suspects at large were likely involved in a deliberate cover-up by tampering with CCTV footage at Central Police Station," the court was told on Friday.
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