IG Koome ordered to present missing Isiolo youth by 4 pm today

Isiolo High Court has ordered the Inspector General of Police, Japhet Koome, to produce a 22-year-old youth and four other young men who were abducted in Isiolo town by unknown assailants.

IG Koome was given up to 4 pm today after the court ruled in favour of the family of the 22-year-old, Issa Osman.

The family filed an application with the court seeking to know the whereabouts of their kin, who went missing four days ago.

Other respondents in the matter are the Directorate of Public Prosecutions under the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP), the Attorney General, the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), and the National Intelligence Service (NIS).

The court certified the matter urgent and ordered that parties be served by 2 pm and the missing man, said to have been under medication, presented in court during an inter-party hearing at 4 pm.

Issa's brother, Abdi Osman, revealed yesterday that they had visited various police stations in Isiolo, Kiambu, and Nairobi counties to no avail.

Isiolo residents take part in the anti-Finance Bill protests on June 25, 2024. (Photo: Waweru Wairimu/EV)

"His health could worsen because he has been on medication," Abdi lamented while demanding the unconditional release of his brother.

The five missing men were reportedly bundled into two Prado vehicles and a Subaru car before being driven towards Nairobi. Two of them were dropped at different points between Isiolo and Timau towns along the Isiolo-Nanyuki road.

The whereabouts of the remaining three: Issa, Mukhtar Tache Ali, and Nura Abdi Diba, remain unknown.

Meanwhile, Law Society of Kenya (LSK) President Faith Odhiambo demanded an immediate investigation of the matter and the prosecution of criminals perpetrating abductions of citizens.

"We note with concern that these unconstitutional abductions persist amidst perpetual denials by the government officials in charge of security over their occurrences," she shared on X handle.

Odhiambo has been at the forefront of securing the release of abducted protesters since the demos against the government commenced last month.

Law Society of Kenya President Faith Odhiambo addresses the media at the Kenyatta National Hospital in Nairobi on June 28, 2024. (Photo: LSK)