By Augustine Ehikioya
For attempting to rob a shop owner in Dagoreti, Stephen Kamotho, two Police officers, Inspector Evans Soita and Constable John Kemboi, are now in Police custody at Gigiri Police Station in Kenya.
Before other Police officers could get to the scene, members of the public had stormed the shop to rescue the shop owner when he raised alarm.
According to a press statement by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations of the Kenya Police Service, which was obtained on Friday by Security Watch Africa (SWA), the arrested officers had fired one round into the air in order to escape lynching by the irate mob.
The statement said “Two police officers are in custody following an attempted robbery with violence incident, which occurred within Kioko area in Dagoreti, at around 11am yesterday.
“The officers identified as Inspector Evans Soita and Constable John Kemboi stationed at Spring Valley Police station had walked into Stephen Kamotho’s shop in Dagoreti, where an altercation is reported to have ensued between the shop owner and the two officers.
“According to a Police report filed by the shop owner Stephen Kamotho at Kikuyu Police station, the complainant detailed how two smartly dressed men who identified themselves as Police officers, stormed his shop and brandished their firearms.
“They attempted to handcuff him but he resisted and raised alarm, attracting curious members of the public who responded in their numbers and rescued him.”
The statement continued “Cornered, the officers opted to escape by firing one round in the air to scare away the irate mob. In the ensuing melee, Inspector Soita lost his Police communication pocket phone, as he took to his heels for dear life.
“Luckily, Police officers on patrol based at Kikuyu, rushed to the scene of the incident & managed to dissuade the angry mob & recovered the crucial Police communication gadget,” it said.
After conducting preliminary investigations, the statement disclosed that it was discovered that the recovered gadget had been issued to Inspector Soita, who is in-charge of Lower Kabete Patrol base.
“The two officers were arrested and placed in custody at Gigiri Police Station, pending arraignment,” it stated.
It also said that the complainant, who sustained injures on his left hand and stomach, was rushed to Nile hospital for medical attention.