Last Mashujaa Day, President Uhuru Kenyatta invoked his Powers of Mercy and set free over 7,000 prisoners from jail.
Friends and families of the released inmates celebrated and thanked the president. But this was not the case for ex-senior police officer, Dickson Munene, whose name was nowhere on the list, despite serving almost a decade in prison.
Munene was charged in 2009 and sentenced to hang together with businessman Alex Chepkonga by High Court Judge Mohammed Warsame.
They were found guilty of the death of 30-year-old Dr James Ng’ang’a Muiruri, a UK-based scholar
After appealing the judgment, businessman Alex Chepkonga was acquitted by three Appellate Court judges, Roselyn Nambuye, David K Maraga and Mohamed Warsame, who said that he had no common intention to kill the deceased.
The judges, however, condemned Munene, who was found guilty of using his pistol, saying it was reckless of him to have used it when the situation did not warrant such action.
Speaking to The Nairobian, Munene claims that on that fateful day, he was on night patrol. He decided to check on his friend, Alex Chepkonga at his residence where he met Dr Muiruri.
Two hours after he leaving, he said, he heard a commotion and on getting out of the car and returning to Chepkonga’s residence, he found him fighting with Dr Muiruri.
“I heard a commotion and when I got out of the car to investigate what was happening, I saw Chepkonga on the ground being beaten by Dr Muiruri. He took off when he saw me approaching. I gave chase caught up with him at the junction near Sarit Centre and blocked his car,” he says.
He adds that, “ I introduced myself as a police inspector and removed a pair of handcuffs to restrain him. That’s when a struggle ensued.
Since my pistol was sliding out of the holster, I removed it to secure it. But Dr Muiruri grabbed my firearm by the barrel and in the process, he shot himself in the chin.
I was shocked because I had no intention of shooting him. I reported the matter to my superiors but they did not believe my story. I felt betrayed.”
He was found guilty and sentenced. The 38-year-old ex-senior policeman and a father of one told The Nairobian that he was the youngest inspector of police in the country at the age of 24.
At the time, he had just completed his bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Nairobi.
He was selected during a police recruitment drive, and after passing out at the Kiganjo Police Training College in 2003, he was posted to Karatina Police Station in Nyeri County.
He got promoted when his seniors noted that he was well-informed, disciplined and hardworking and he transfered him to the crimes division where he gathered vast experience.
Munene says that it is his competence and academic credentials that propelled him to such great heights, which saw him transferred from Karatina Police Station to Kilimani Police Division and later to Capital Hill Police Post.
“I got in the police force when I had just finished my degree in economics from the University of Nairobi, though my family didn’t like the idea.
I was enrolled for an engineering course, but I dropped it and opted for economics instead because I envied bank cashiers whom I saw whenever I accompanied my mother to the bank.”
Munene who hails from Kangema in Murang’a County, confesses that he gave up on life during the first days behind bars.
“The ordeal was devastating to my wife, family and friends. They were shocked when they heard that I was imprisoned for life.
They knew me as humble person who would help those in need. But I am glad that they visit me frequently and have not deserted me,” he says, adding that, “I am shocked that none of my cop friends have ever come to visit me.”
Munene reveals that prison life has made him more spiritual and closer to God.“I wake up at around 5am to prepare for the day.
My day starts with prayers and physical exercises. Life in jail is not a bed of roses and as a former policeman, my life is constantly threatened by people I once apprehended and got convicted,” he discloses.
Currently, he is working as a volunteer at a recollection centre where he teaches computer classes and writes applications for those joining colleges, besides maintaining computers.
He is also pursuing a master’s degree in business administration, with a major in entrepreneurship at Kenyatta University.
“I teach computer classes and maintenance of computers at the prison, among other things. I’m also as second-year law student at the University of London where I study criminal law through virtual learning and have successfully completed Certified Public Accounts Section Six.
Most importantly, I strive to give hope to my brothers by making them understand that life does not end behind these walls,” he says.
Munene hopes that he will get a presidential pardon this year and encourages fellow inmates not to give up, but grab opportunities that has come along with the prison reforms.
