• Katana, a Form 2 student at Harvard Secondary School, was shot dead by police five years ago as he was returning from a wedding party.
• Police said he belonged to the Wakali Kwanza juvenile gang, a claim disputed by his parents, friends and agemates. A policeman is on trial for murder.
Image: BRIAN OTIENO
@Yobramos4
It has been a long wait for justice.
Five years ago, Ruth Syombua said goodbye to her 16-year-old son Tony Katana who was off to a wedding party at Karama in Kongowea, Nyali constituency.
That was the last time she would see her firstborn son alive.
She remembers the date: Friday, August 12, 2016,
Katana, a Form 2 student at Harvard Secondary School, was shot dead by police officers at around 11pm while returning from the wedding party.
He was with six friends, who said they were stopped by men who did not identify themselves. They fled in fear.
Katana did not get away.
Police said he was a member of the notorious Wakali Kwanza juvenile gang, a claim disputed by his parents, friends and age mates.
That was the beginning of a downward spiral for Syombua, now 38.
“I still don't have closure," told the Star on Thursday.
On Thursday, the Sergeant John Otieno from Nyali police station in Mombasa appeared before justice Eric Ogola to answer to murder charges
Ogola ordered he be taken for a psychiatric evaluation at Coast General Teaching and Referral Hospital before he can plead.
Four days after the shooting, Syombua wanted to see the suspect in her son's death. She approached a policeman friend also attached to the Nyali police station to help identify the officer.
“I just wanted to see him. And possibly ask him why he chose to kill my son and not anybody else. It was hard to live through that pain. I thought seeing him would at least give me some closure,” Syombua said.
Her policeman friend agreed and said the person he would greet first at the station was the suspect.
“When I saw the suspect, I could not believe it. He was one of the officers I had talked to during my numerous trips to the police station to find answers,” Syombua said.
She said the officers were harsh and told her family to go away every time they visited the police station.
Katana was buried on September 10, 2016, at Kisasii village in Kitui county.
Syombua’s husband Magastone Kenga changed after the loss of their son.
“He became moody and didn’t want to talk to anyone. Things became hard for us and we argued frequently over minor issues," Syombua said.
Eventually, her husband walked out.
“I have not seen him for a very long time,” his estranged wife said.
She was forced to close her small businesses, a salon, a barbershop and an eatery at VOK.
“Every time I was at the business premises, I used to see police officers around a lot. I felt their presence had increased since my son died. I thought they were looking for an excuse to shoot me," she said.
So she closed shop and took a break to relax her mind.
Then she was broke because she had used all her savings and didn't have money to restart her businesses.
“That's how I found myself with no source of income. I started doing menial jobs like washing clothes," Syombua said.
She struggled alone to send her two sons to school.
Now I know God is really there and He never leaves His people.Mother of youth shot dead by police
Henry Kenga, now 19 and studying at Thika University, was schooling at Shimo la Tewa High School when his elder brother was shot dead.
Her last born, Sebastian Kikii, was at Kongowea Primary School, doing his KCPE exam in 2017.
He couldn't join high school for lack of fees.
Syombua said she is grateful justice is finally seen to be served.
She was supported by Muslims for Human Rights rapid response officer Francis Auma and an Independent Policing Oversight Authority officer. She was identified only as Jane.
“Ipoa and Muhuri have been updating me about the case. They encouraged me that justice will be served and buoyed me during my low moments when I felt like giving up,”Syombua said.
“Now I know God is really there and He never leaves His people,” she said.
It has taken a long time, five years, but Ipoa has done a good job, Auma said.
“Now people will start to gain trust in the authority,” he said.
He said police officers should know they will not get away with extrajudicial killing.
“The law will always catch up with them. Whether it is the judicial law, God’s law or the law of the jungle,” Auma said.
He said other cases are pending, including that of Caleb Espino, a matatu tout who died while in police custody at the Changamwe police station on September 18, 2018.
Ipoa chair Anne Makori told the Star Tony Katana's death prompted an investigation after his body was discovered and identified by relatives the day after he died.
“Section 25 of the Ipoa Act demands that deaths, which are a result of police action or caused by members of the National Police Service while on duty, be investigated by the Authority,” she said.
“Consequently and acting on its own volition, the Authority launched an investigation. [It] established the student died of bullet injuries inflicted during an encounter with police and that the death falls within Ipoa's mandate to hold police accountable for their actions,” Makori said.
On Thursday, state prosecutor Vallerie Ongeti applied to have Otieno undergo psychiatrist testing to determine if he can be charged and if he is fit for trial.
She asked the court to appoint an advocate for Otieno if he has none.
The officer is to plead to murder charges on September 7.
(Edited by V. Graham)