The family of Albert Ojwang and human rights organisations have called on the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) to conduct thorough investigations to unravel the mysterious death of their kin.
This even as the postmortem exercise turned into a stalemate after government pathologist Johansen Oduor stepped aside, citing a conflict of interest due to his blood relations with the deceased.
He later clarified that he will be part of the team overseeing the post-mortem but will not be the one conducting the autopsy.
Government Pathologist Dr. Dorothy Njeru will conduct the procedure this afternoon, a suggestion sharply rejected by private pathologists.
Human rights defenders staged protests outside the Nairobi funeral home on Monday while demanding justice for the late Ojwang, who was an X influencer.
The family lawyer, who refuted the police narrative of suicide, said the body of the late bore injuries on the head, shoulders and hand, pointing to a possibility of torture and murder.
Ojwang died on Sunday under mysterious circumstances while in custody at Nairobi’s Central police station after his arrest for false publication in Homa Bay County last Saturday.
Police initially claimed that Ojwang was found unconscious in a cell after hitting his head against the wall and later died while being taken to Mbagathi Hospital.
However, the Inspector General of the National Police Service Douglas Kanja ordered the interdiction of several officers to ensure a thorough, impartial, and expeditious investigation.
“The National Police Service (NPS) wishes to inform the public that, following the tragic death of Albert Ojwang while in police custody at Central Police Station, Nairobi, and to ensure a thorough, impartial, and expeditious investigation by the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA), the Inspector General of the National Police Service has ordered the interdiction of the following officers with immediate effect.” The IG said in a statement.
“The Officer Commanding Station (OCS), Central Police Station; The Duty Officer on duty during the night in question; The Cell Sentry on duty at the time; All officers who were on duty at the Report Office that night; Any other officer found to have been on duty or otherwise involved during the incident.”
