Police officer arrested after man escapes from custody

A police officer in Eldoret, Uasin Gishu County has been arrested after a notorious robbery and rape suspect escaped from custody.

The suspect- Humphrey Shilisia- mysteriously escaped from Langas police station cells on Tuesday night.

The escape of the suspect sparked angry protests in Kapseret on Thursday, with residents demanding the prosecution of the police officer on duty during the escape.

He had been arrested on Friday last week together with two other suspects for robbery with violence but police sought to detain him them for more days pending investigations.

Kapseret sub-county police commander Francis Warui said he escaped in the middle of the night and had not been traced by Thursday afternoon.

Mr Warui said the police officer on duty at the time of the escape could not explain how the suspect managed to escape under their watch at the station and was arrested.

He said Mr Shilisia is a serial robbery with violence and rape suspect who has been terrorizing residents in Eldoret and neighbouring areas.

"The police had tracked the suspect with the help of Safaricom, and we arrested him last week. We sought more time to conclude investigations but he escaped. The officer on duty has been arrested, and he will face disciplinary action and prosecution," Mr Warui said.

He said locals protested after hearing about the escape.

"We calmed the locals, and we promise that re-arrest the suspect as soon as possible. We are already following crucial leads," the police commander said.

According to police reports, the escapee is suspected to be behind a series of robberies and rape incidences in Uasin Gishu and the neighbouring Nandi County.

Angry locals through Kimutai Kurui the director at Centre for Torture, a rights group based in Eldoret said four women said to have been robbed and raped identified the suspect in a parade.

Mr Kurui called for the immediate transfer of the station's OCS.

"A junior police officer can't release a suspect without authority from the OCS. We want an overhaul of Uasin Gishu security team to weed out police officers who are colliding with criminals," he said.

Locals claimed the suspect terrorised residents in Mlango area on the border of Uasin Gishu and Nandi counties on Wednesday night, a day after he escaped.