The trial of a German landowner accused of obstructing a lawful exercise has been postponed.
The court postponed the trial of Edmond Durr so as to allow him time to seek treatment for injuries he claims were inflicted on him by the police on Saturday.
Mr Durr told the court that he was attacked and wounded by police officers and other officials who had invaded his property to demarcate it.
But the police said Durr had obstructed a lawful exercise, and charged him with the crime of “creating a disturbance”. Durr lays claim to the land and has produced documents to support the ownership.
The German, married to a Kenyan woman, also told the court that after assaulting him, the police refused to provide or sign his P3 forms to enable him lodge a complaint.
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He appeared in court yesterday in bandages and his lawyer, Abdurrahman Aminga, appealed to Magistrate Paul Mutai to postpone the trial to enable his client receive treatment.
Mr Mutai suspended the plea taking to Wednesday next week.
Ulterior motive
“The charges are a mere cover up by the police to hide their ulterior motive of beating up the accused,” said Mr Aminga during his application to stop the plea.
The lawyer said police had hurriedly pieced together the charges to prevent his client from bringing assault charges against them.
“We are now waiting for the court proceedings to be signed before we serve the police,” he said.
On Sunday, police claimed that Durr was obstructing the survey of land belonging to Kenya Ports Authority (KPA). But the 60-year-old man said he was attacked and beaten as he tried to confront and take pictures of people accompanied by police on his property.
Msambweni OCPD Joseph Omijah dismissed the assault claims and accused Durr of interfering with the demarcation that had been planned for months.
“The land belongs to KPA. Surveyors were accompanied by police to conduct the exercise,” said Mr Omijah.
