Police shot dead two Egerton university students despite them having identification, says Ipoa

The Independent Policing Oversight Authority (Ipoa) on October 1, 2015, recommended that a police constable be charged with killing two university students.

Constable Patrick Thuranira, who was later charged in a Nairobi court, was accused of killing Dennis Ongwae and Felix Ngaywa at Globe Cinema roundabout in Nairobi on November 7, 2014.

Ipoa stated that investigations had revealed that the two students from Egerton University were executed by the police constable, who was at the time based at Central Police Station in Nairobi attached to the anti-mugging unit.

“Investigators found that the two students had travelled from Egerton University’s Njoro Campus to Nairobi on the day they were killed,” read Ipoa’s statement in part.

“They were accompanied by a friend and had travelled to Nairobi to follow up on their Higher Education Loans Board (Helb) loans at Anniversary Towers.”

CIVILIAN’S MURDER

The report revealed that the two students decided to visit a relative within Nairobi after finishing up with Helb and were leaving town for a relative’s house in Mathare North at about 9:40pm, when the incident occurred.

According to an Independent Medico-Legal Unit report, the constable shot the two at a time when Gor Mahia football club fans had staged riots in the city.

The constable is said to have been off duty and was in civilian uniform during the encounter but was armed with a pistol, which he allegedly used to commit the murder.

In its investigations, Ipoa said it had established that the two students were not involved in any mugging as alleged by Mr Thuranira.

“Despite having their national and university identification documents on them when they were shot, the police labelled the two as unidentified in police and mortuary records and failed to disclose to their families the truth about the incident.”

And on January 8, Director of Public Prosecutions Keriako Tobiko recommended that another police constable be charged with the murder of a civilian in Nairobi.

The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions approved the murder charges after Ipoa concluded investigations linking the officer to the death of Bernard Ogutu.