Former central OCPD Tiberias Thomas Ekisa at the Milimani law courts on July 17, 2025./SARAH AWINJAFormer Central Police OCPD and Commissioner of Police Tiberias Thomas Ekisa has denied ever issuing a shoot-to-kill order during the anti-government protests of June 18 and 20, 2024.
Testifying before Presiding Magistrate Geoffrey Onsarigo at the Milimani Law Courts on Thursday, Ekisa said that while he oversaw operations in Central Nairobi, including areas around KICC and Kamukunji, he never authorised the use of live ammunition.
He also maintained that no fatalities occurred in areas under his command.
“Our intelligence indicated a plot to occupy Parliament and interfere with official records. That’s why I deployed officers to reinforce the Sergeant-at-Arms,” Ekisa explained, defending his decision to bolster security around Parliament.
Court proceedings were briefly disrupted when a man in the gallery accused Ekisa of giving the shoot-to-kill directive.
Ekisa denied the claim and emphasised that he had no command over any officer linked to the fatal shootings.
Ekisa told the court that on June 20, while stationed near Parliament, he received a call from Bliss Hospital informing him of a patient with a gunshot wound who later died.
The deceased was identified as a 21-year-old protester, Rex Masai.
Following the alert, officers visited both the hospital and Moi Avenue, where Rex had reportedly been shot.
A postmortem conducted on June 20 confirmed that Rex died from a single gunshot wound caused by live ammunition.
To aid the investigation, Ekisa wrote to various CCTV owners in the CBD on July 3—including buildings along Moi Avenue, ICT offices, and Insurance Plaza—requesting footage.
“None complied,” he told the court, adding that while some guards confirmed Rex was picked up from Moi Avenue, toxicology results from the government chemist are still pending.
Ekisa further stated that many potential eyewitnesses were unwilling to cooperate with police or IPOA, which he said had significantly slowed the investigation.
He also reported that one firearm stolen from a private bureau during the unrest has not been recovered, although another weapon has been submitted for ballistic analysis.
On the question of responsibility, Ekisa distanced himself from Officer Isaiah Murangiri, who has been implicated in the shooting.
He stated that Murangiri was not under his command and was not part of the 140 officers deployed under the Central Police.
"I did not know the elite Alpha Mike unit either. It was not part of the deployment I supervised," he said.
The court also heard a prosecution request to allow a protected witness to testify via video link from the IPOA offices.
The witness, citing safety concerns, requested anonymity. Investigating Officer Elias Ouma supported the application, noting the sensitivity of the evidence.
Magistrate Onsarigo granted the request, directing ICT support for the witness to testify in camera on July 21, 22, and 29.
The matter was adjourned to those dates at 2:00 p.m. for further proceedings
Family of Rex Masai in Milimani law courts on July 17/SARAH AWINJA
