Two suspects who are accused of tampering with CCTV footage
after the alleged murder of teacher and blogger Albert Ojwang have been
arraigned at Kibera Law Courts.
The two were presented in court Monday afternoon, where IPOA is expected to seek more time to detain them.
The pair was presented before the court on Monday and is expected to face allegations of obstruction of justice by tampering with critical surveillance evidence.
Among the two arraigned is a technician said to have been
paid Sh3,000 to tamper with the CCTV footage that is believed to be crucial
in the ongoing probe.
According to police, the suspect was arrested at his Saika
residence on Friday morning in a targeted operation.
Police said the technician admitted to being involved in
efforts to interfere with the CCTV system.
The technician told police that a woman who had contracted
him in 2024 to install CCTV cameras at the station had supplied all equipment,
including 25 cameras and a server/DVR with 30-day storage capacity.
He said he installed cameras at the report office, corridors
leading to the cells, both floors, and the parking yard.
He added that he had been called back several times for
maintenance, though infrequently.
He told investigators that on June 8, 2025, at 6:22 am, he
received a phone call from a police officer at the station requesting him to
report there immediately.
Upon arrival, he was taken to the office of a senior
officer, where the DVR is housed and was allegedly asked to delete footage from
June 6 and 7, 2025.
He claimed he informed them that specific-day deletion was
not possible, and the only option was to format the hard drive, which would
erase all stored data and restore default settings.
He added that he did not remove anything from the DVR and
was given Sh3,000 by a senior officer after the task.
The following day, June 9, 2025, at 6:28 am, the same
officer reportedly called him again, asking him to return with a new hard drive
to replace the old one in the DVR.
He said the officer advised him not to wear reflective
clothing or anything that would identify him as a technician.
Because shops were not yet open, he went to the station
without a new hard drive and found the DVR had already been opened and tampered
with. He was told to return later.
At 12:07 pm, the officer called to check if he was
available, but he was working in Westlands at the time.
The officer also informed him that his contact had been
shared with an IPOA official seeking help retrieving footage.
The IPOA officer contacted him, but he said he was unable to
assist and instead sent a colleague, citing work commitments and concern over
the reports circulating online about a death at the station.
Police said they are pursuing at least three more suspects
in relation to the matter.
Detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations
are supporting the Independent Policing Oversight Authority in the ongoing
investigation.
He is the second person to be arrested in connection with
the matter, as police continue to pursue at least four more individuals.
Some of the suspects are reported to be in hiding.
At least 23 people have recorded statements so far,
including 17 police officers drawn from the DCI, as well as officers stationed
at Central and Mawego police stations.
