A police officer was disarmed and arrested for questioning after he had shot and killed a driver of a van in a case of mistaken identity in Kathasyo, Masimba, Kajiado County.
The police officer explained he mistook the driver and his car occupants
of being thieves targeting fibre cables running through the area.
There have been cases where the fibre optic cables are targeted for vandalism, which leaves a huge loss of data signals in other parts of the country.
Survivors of the incident said the driver, with four others, said they were
on the evening of September 15 evening headed to Muoni River to fetch water when their van
developed mechanical issues.
The driver and others on board stopped to attend to the issues when another
Probox with full lights approached from the opposite direction and stopped.
A police officer who was in full uniform came out of the car while asking the
occupants what they were doing there.
Before they could explain, he opened fire, hitting the driver, identified
as Samuel Mutua
Mulwa.
The driver was rushed to Makindu Sub-County Hospital, where he was
pronounced dead on arrival.
The body had gunshot injuries, with the bullet head suspected to have lodged inside the stomach.
The car was found with a gunshot at the driver’s
door and empty plastic jerricans.
The body was moved to Makindu Sub-County Hospital mortuary, awaiting
post-mortem.
The officer was armed with Agalile Ace 521 with 25 rounds of ammunitions
and alleged he was issued the rifle for patrol duties along the Optic fibre
cable lane.
He was disarmed of the rifle with 17 rounds of 7.62x51mm, where 8 rounds
were suspected to have been spent. Police said they are investigating the
incident.
Meanwhile, police in Lodwar, Turkana County are investigating an incident
where a woman was abducted after gunmen shot to the air in an attack.
The woman’s husband managed to escape the scene on September 15, 2025.
The motive of the abduction is yet to be established, police said. The
gunmen escaped with the woman aboard a motorcycle, police said.
A spent cartridge suspected to be of an AK-47 rifle was recovered at the
scene, together with a smartphone believed to have been left behind by suspects.
Such cases are common in the area for cultural or monetary gains.
