Police on the spot over death of three in Kisumu

The three men were last seen in the company of police officers, but a day later their bodies were found dumped 70 kilometres away. Police now feign ignorance and have started Ping-pong over who should investigate, writes MANGOA MOSOTAWhen three friends met one morning and decided to go to a village in Kisumu West District to recover a mobile phone, they believed they would be gone for only a few hours.After all they were using a motorcycle for the 15-kilometre journey from their home village in Kombewa to Nyahera in Kisumu West District.Their relatives had no reason to worry about their safety as they went on with their daily business.But that afternoon on March 27, when they took too long to return, a friend who had been waiting for them tried to raise them on their mobile phones unsuccessfully. At about 4pm, he decided he could not wait any longer and decided to go and check them at Nyahera. He was accompanied by a relative of one of them.It is then that they sensed something bad might have happened to the three. They were informed that they were seen at Dago in the company of police officers who claimed to have arrested them.They proceeded to Dago Police Post to verify the claim and officers at the post told them that the three had been arrested in the area and taken to Maseno Police Station.Police denialBut when they went to Maseno Police Station, they were told that none of the three men was booked in the station’s Occurrence Book."The officers at Dago were unfriendly, but I got fearful when police at Maseno Police Station told us that they were not aware of the arrests we were talking about," recalls Steve Ochieng, a younger brother to one of the three men.When they returned home that evening, they had hoped that the three would have returned. But this was not to be.The next morning on March 28, the relatives of the three men woke up early ready to search for their kin.But they were not prepared for the news they were to receive later that afternoon.It was at noon that a report came from police indicating that two bodies had been found near a sugarcane plantation in Mberere area along Nandi Hills-Chemilil road, Nandi South District, more than 70 kilometres from Nyahera.And through documents contained in one of the deceased’s pockets, police were able to confirm that the two men were among the men who had gone missing from Nyahera.Shocking discoveryThe bodies belonged to 22-year-old Erick Ochieng and 30-year-old Joseph Otieno who had gone missing the previous day.Their bodies were bludgeoned, their necks twisted and had deep cuts to their heads.Their faces were disfigured.Their families could not understand how the two men who had allegedly been arrested by police met their deaths in a ghastly manner 70 kilometres away from their homes. As their relatives mourned and after burying their kin, the third family was still looking for their relative.But two weeks later, the third body belonging to 38-year-old David Omondi was found in a mortuary entered as that of an unknown person.The family learnt that Omondi’s body was found near River Yala and taken to Yala Level Five Hospital Mortuary by police officers from Luanda Police Station. The body was discovered the same day as those of two of his colleagues.But what shocked his relatives is the findings of a post-mortem examination conducted early this month by Dr Joseph Muturi at Yala Level Five Hospital Mortuary. The examination showed that the deceased had three gunshot wounds — one bullet tore through the stomach, the second entered near the mouth and exited near the ear while the third bullet entered through the chest and exited on the backside.Following the release of the results of the post-mortem examination for Omondi, relatives of the other two victims are now suspicious that their kin, like Omondi, may have met their deaths through the gun.They suspect that police may have shot dead the three and hidden their bodies as a cover-up.They are now working with a human rights organisation to seek for exhumation orders from the court so that fresh post-mortem examination can be conducted on the two bodies. doubtful examinationInitial post-mortem examination on the two bodies was conducted by a medical officer of health who is not a qualified pathologist."Ochieng had injuries on the head and seemed to have been strangled. But it appears the hole on his head was a bullet wound and not a sharp object as recorded in the post-mortem report," says Ochieng’s father Mr Joseph Odidi."I want another post-mortem examination to be carried out by an independent pathologist. We need to know the truth as to what caused my son’s death," he adds.He says the Government conducted the examination in his presence and that of his two sons at Kapsabet District Hospital Mortuary last month."But the post-mortem examination is suspect, as we were told that a sharp object went through one side of the face and exited through the other," argues Odidi, adding there is a likelihood that this sharp object was a bullet. Joseph Otieno, who hailed from Kanyawanda village, had multiple injures to the head. A post-mortem examination conducted at Kapsabet District Hospital Mortuary states that he had multiple injuries on the head. Families of the deceased accuse the police of laxity in investigations. Indeed, they suspect the three may have been killed by police officers.Some residents of Dago village, who spoke to CCI on condition they won’t be named for fear of reprisals, say they saw the three men with police officers on the fateful Sunday. "Two of them were walking when a policeman from the station approached them and ordered them to follow him," said a local resident, who said he could identify the officer.Motorbike controversyAnother resident says the bone of contention between the police officers and the deceased seemed to be the motorbike they were riding since it didn’t have number plates. The person suspected to have stolen the phone from Kombewa, who declined to give his name, and his brother confirmed to CCI that indeed the three men came to their home on the morning of March 27, in search of the phone. Two of the men left the suspect’s residence to get the owner of the phone, Ochieng who they had left at Dago, about a kilometre away. They realised the phone was not theirs and left.From this point, the three disappeared and even their motorcycle has not been traced.Initially, Kisumu OCPD John Mwinzi said that the three may have been gangsters who differed over stolen property or money.Mwinzi said police can’t engage in such macabre killings, adding that the three were perhaps part of a gang that had differed over stolen loot.Their families, however, deny that they were criminals.Nyanza PCIO Joseph Mugwanja told CCI that police are carrying out investigation over the killings. He, however, noted that these days criminals wear police uniforms while committing crime."Investigations have to be carried out. It might not help much by accusing police. The murder investigation will be carried out starting from the point where the body is found," Mr Mugwanja said of the murder of Omondi, whose body was found near River Yala.Ping pong gameHe said the two other deaths will be investigated by police from Rift Valley since the bodies were found in the region.Nandi South OCPD Waithera Kipsoi said initial investigation showed that the two men had been killed elsewhere and their bodies dumped in the area."Our investigation showed that the men had been hijacked in Maseno. Hence, we referred the case to Kisumu police for further investigation on the same day the bodies were discovered," she said, adding that they sent the file of the case to the police in Kisumu.However, Kisumu OCPD John Mwinzi denied that they had received such a file."The case has not been referred to me. Investigations are supposed to be carried in the police jurisdiction where bodies are found," argued Mwinzi.Mugwanja said witnesses should record statements with the police.He, however, noted that if the witnesses are afraid to record statements with the police, they can give evidence in court after an inquest is opened.He said the police officers cannot be investigated at this point in time since there is no evidence linking them to the murder.

Police on the spot over death of three in Kisumu

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Police on the spot over death of three in Kisumu

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