A Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) ranger has turned on his superior in the abduction case of missing Nakuru fisherman Brian Odhiambo.
Odhiambo disappeared on January 18, 2025, allegedly after being arrested by KWS rangers for illegal fishing in Lake Nakuru within Nakuru National Park.
Alexander Lorogoi, one of six rangers charged with abducting Odhiambo with intent to unlawfully confine him, yesterday took the witness stand before Senior Principal Magistrate Kipkurui Kibelion to defend himself after the court placed the accused on their defence.
In his testimony, Lorogoi said he was merely following orders from his superior, Senior Sergeant Francis Wachira, who was leading an operation that allegedly resulted in Odhiambo's disappearance.
Lorogoi and Wachira are charged alongside fellow rangers Isaac Ochieng, Michael Wabukala, Evans Kimaiyo, and Abdulrahaman Sudi.
In a two-hour testimony, Lorogoi told the court that every action undertaken during the operation was carried out under Wachira's instructions and that all reports were made directly to him.
The ranger testified that despite having worked inside the park for only 29 days, his first assignment was joining a squad on January 18, 2025, at about 10 am on a mission to arrest illegal fishermen and trespassers.
“Under the instruction of our boss Wachira, we boarded a KWS vehicle and headed to Vietnam near the lake. However, before we reached there, we met two rangers who spoke to our boss, after which the vehicle diverted and sped off towards the Sewage area within Nakuru East,” testified Lorogoi.
He said that upon arriving at the Sewage area, they spotted a man running, and Wachira ordered them to pursue him. Lorogoi said he and Ochieng alighted from the vehicle and gave chase.
Although he did not explain how they managed to apprehend the man, Lorogoi testified that, despite being unarmed, they cornered him. He said the suspect initially challenged them but complied after being ordered to stop.
“Ochieng frisked him and only found a sack. We directed him to the vehicle. The man, who was dressed in dirty black clothes, did not resist and walked to the vehicle,” testified Lorogoi.
He denied that the man was Odhiambo, despite giving a description that matched accounts earlier provided by Odhiambo's parents and other prosecution witnesses.
Lorogoi also failed to explain what distinguished the suspect from Odhiambo, and led him to conclude that the man was not the missing fisherman.
He testified that Wabukala and Kimaiyo, who were armed, later joined them to help secure the suspect.
The court heard that the team then drove to a bridge a few metres from the arrest scene, where Sudi's vehicle joined them.
“Wachira ordered the suspect to leave our vehicle and go to Sudi's vehicle. He directed other rangers to tie his hands and load him into Sudi's vehicle. I did not see anything else after that,” he testified.
However, Lorogoi struggled to explain how he failed to observe events unfolding only a few metres away or why he did not ensure that the suspect he had arrested was safely transferred.
He further told the court that about four minutes later, Wachira and other rangers who had accompanied Sudi rejoined them, and they proceeded to the Vietnam area, where they arrested nine other suspects.
Despite escorting the nine suspects to a processing centre within the park before they were taken to Bondeni Police Station, Lorogoi said he never saw the earlier suspect again.
“The only person who knew where the suspect was was my boss, Wachira, because we left him in his custody. I did not see the suspect again. Later, I heard that he was missing,” he testified.
Lorogoi also struggled to explain how the suspect was apprehended without force being used. While denying any assault, he maintained that the man was in good condition when he last saw him.
He admitted, however, that he did not ask the suspect's name, inform him of the reasons for his arrest, or ensure that he was presented before the processing office.
“I was summoned by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) and informed that a suspect believed to be Odhiambo had gone missing on the day of the operation,” he said.
Lorogoi testified that after recording statements in the early hours of January 22, 2025, he was arrested, detained for a day, and later charged with abduction.
“Whatever I did, I was only following orders from our boss, Wachira. Despite not being identified during the identification parade, I was part of the squad that carried out the operation that day,” he testified.
The defence hearing will continue on June 22.
