Questions continue to linger on Tuesday over the circumstances surrounding the arrest and detention of the Officer Commanding Station (OCS) at Nairobi’s Central Police Station, Dishen Angoya.
According to police records seen by The Standard, the police boss was arrested and booked at Langata police station at 12,45 am Monday, midnight.
It is alleged that he was arrested for controversially releasing from police custody some 64 suspects of anti-fuel price hike demos in Nairobi.
"The OCS Central Police Station, Nairobi Region, was arrested by the Deputy Regional Police Commander for the offence of abuse of office in that yesterday, May 18, 2026, without lawful authority and improperly conferring on himself a benefit, released 64 prisoners who had been arrested for offences relating to public order," the police record indicated.
By Tuesday morning, junior officers at the Langata police station where he was held told The Standard that he had been taken ill and rushed to Langata hospital for treatment.
He is suspected of having suffered high blood pressure while being detained.
However, the senior officer failed to appear in court for arraignment, in what has deepened intrigues surrounding his arrests that sparked outrage from a section of the public and human rights activists.
Law Society of Kenya dispatched its team of advocates to the facility, condemned the act, saying an OCS is legally authorised to process and release individuals, subject to the law and the rights guaranteed under Article 49 of the Constitution.
"Punitive action arising from the lawful exercise of such discretion risks sending a chilling message to police officers tasked with upholding constitutional safeguards," LSK wrote on X.
Former LSK boss Faith Odhiambo said they will provide him with legal support and that they are "anticipating this matter will soon be resolved to its logical and just conclusion. We await his arraignment in court and will ensure he is properly represented."
Activist Boniface Mwangi, who visited Mr Angoya at the hospital, also failed to arrest, claiming that the allegations are politically motivated.
"Arresting Angoya for respecting the right to protest," he said, alleging that it was "a clear sign of desperation" by President Willian Ruto.
"We are also calling on the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions and the Judiciary not to approve the trumped-up charges that will be brought against him," he urged.
Crowds gathered outside Langata hospital, where he is receiving treatment, as they chanted solidarity slogans, demanding his release.
Images shared on social media showed him in a hospital bed under tight security, with five police officers, some of whom were seated in anti-riot gear, with others standing at the facility's waiting bay.
The arrests followed nationwide protests sparked by a sharp increase in fuel prices announced by the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA) in its May review.
