Murang'a gang member was shot 9 times at close range - Autopsy

A postmortem conducted on one of the two men killed following a bank robbery in Kigumo, Murang’a County has indicated that he was shot nine times.

Pathologist Kamotho Watenga has confirmed Joseph Kamau Kang’ethe succumbed to multiple gunshot injuries and that three of the bullets were shot in the head at close range and had exited.

Six others were in the chest and abdomen and seemed to have been fragmenting bullets as they had no exit wounds.

“We could not find the six bullets and the body will have to undergo an X-ray to show exactly where the fragments are located so they can be retrieved so that all parties are satisfied,” he said.

The X-ray will be conducted at Murang’a Level five hospital on Thursday night and a radiologist report issued on Friday.

Kamotho said Kamau’s body also had blunt force trauma on the legs, back and right hand.

Kamau’s father Francis Kang’ethe on his part said he was shocked to see media reports indicating that his son had been arrested before being shot dead.

“I saw it on Sunday evening and wondered how that came to be. On Monday, I travelled from my home in Ruiru to Murang’a and confirmed it was indeed him,” the 63-year-old said.

He described Kang’ethe as a quiet man who did not have a habit of picking arguments and had a good reputation even in society.

Kang’ethe who was accompanied by his son and friend said he brought his children up in church and that even his neighbours are shocked at the turn of events.

The father of three said Kamau,30, was his second-born son and that he joined the Administration Police in 2017.

He was however given a summary dismissal last year after deserting his job and has since been doing odd jobs to support his wife and two children.

“I want the truth to stand. How can somebody be arrested then be shot dead? He should have been taken to court. I was so shocked that they killed him. Let them tell us the truth and stop issuing different statements."

Kamau said once proven to be in the wrong, the responsible officers should be taken to court so that his son can get justice.

Independent Medical Legal Unit (IMLU) that accompanied Independent Police Oversight Authority (IPOA) in over sighting the postmortem has vowed to follow up on the matter until the truth is established.

Stephen Mugacha, IMLU’s representative, said the pathologist’s report will inform the decision that the organization will take.

“We would like to see investigations in this matter expedited and the officers responsible tried to deter the recurrence of such cases.

Mugacha said in 2021, 210 cases of police brutality were reported in the country but that they increased to 255 last year.

Kamau was shot dead together with an accomplice who is yet to be identified.

The two were part of a six-member gang that robbed the Unaitas sacco Mununga branch, making away with Sh4 million.

The gang that is said to have perpetrated the robbery for over 45 minutes then fled to the nearby Kinyona forest, abandoning two motorcycles that it had used to get to the trading centre.

The gang also shot one person in the leg as locals pelted them with stones as they left.

Central Region Police Commander Lydia Ligami said a contingent of police officers combed through the forest overnight and discovered the gang's hideout.

A shootout ensued and two gang members succumbed, she added.

The gang, she said, had grabbed two guns from two local police officers in different incidences, and that guns had been recovered at the scene.

But the Directorate of Criminal Investigations had posted on its social media forums that the two gang members had been arrested and even posted their photos.

They later deleted the post and indicated that the two had been shot dead in a shoot-out, causing an outcry.

Central Regional Commissioner Fredrick Shisia later clarified that officers had arrested the two as they were coming out of the Kinyona forest carrying a bag of money.

They then asked them to take them where they had hidden the firearms they had stolen from police officers.

The suspects led officers to the forest during which a shoot-out ensued leading to the death of the suspects.

Shisia said the two were not shot dead by police.