Boniface Kariuki is brain-dead, family says

 

Boniface Mwangi Kariuki's family at Kenyatta National Hospital on June 29, 2025, where they confirmed he had been declared brain dead. [Winfrey Owino, Standard]

Boniface Mwangi Kariuki, who was shot in the head at close range during ‘Justice for Albert Ojwang’ protests, has been declared brain dead, the family has said.

According to the family spokesperson, Emily Wanjira, they were called by the hospital at midnight on Saturday and informed of the patient's state.

While speaking to journalists this afternoon, Ms Wanjira said, “We were called to come here at midnight. When we got here, they told us that he is now braindead but there is still a pulse. They cannot turn off the life support machine because of legal issues”.

While calling for financial support from Kenyans of goodwill, Wanjira has also disclosed that the hospital Bill is now over Sh3 million.

This comes a few hours after the family said bullet fragments are still lodged in his brain.

For two weeks now, Kariuki, who was hawking masks before he was shot, has been lying in critical condition at Kenyatta National Hospital.

The family say the hospital bill has already climbed to over Sh3 million.

Kariuki, 22, was rushed to the facility on June 17 after being shot along Tom Mboya Street during a demonstration calling for the resignation of Deputy Inspector General Eliud Lagat.

While surgeons who conducted the first head surgery on the patient reported that they had removed the bullet, some fragments of the ammunition lodged in Kariuki’s brain have presented a serious challenge for the medical team.

Ms Wanjira on Friday disclosed that Kariuki had undergone a third surgery, while doctors continued their efforts to save his life in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).

“He underwent surgery on Friday. The procedure involved relocating the breathing tubes from the nose to the throat to help him breathe normal oxygen,” said Ms Wanjira.

She added, “Part of it was a procedure known as pegging, which involves creating a pathway for feeding tubes below the abdomen, connecting to the intestines for patients unable to swallow.”