NAIROBI, Kenya (BN24) — A senior Kenyan police officer has been arrested in connection with the death of blogger Albert Ojwang, whose body was found in a Nairobi police cell last week under suspicious circumstances, sparking nationwide protests and renewed scrutiny of police abuse in the East African nation.
Kenya’s Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) confirmed Friday that the officer in charge of Nairobi’s Central Police Station was taken into custody, alongside a CCTV technician accused of tampering with surveillance footage from the night Ojwang died.
Ojwang, 31, was found dead on Sunday, two days after being arrested. Police initially reported his death as a suicide, but an independent autopsy revealed signs of physical assault, contradicting the official version and prompting public outcry.
According to IPOA Commissioner Samati Kemboi, the station’s CCTV system had been intentionally interfered with, with footage altered and formatted in the early hours of Sunday, shortly before Ojwang’s death was discovered. The CCTV technician is accused of playing a direct role in the cover-up.
The case has reignited deep frustrations over Kenya’s long history of police brutality, extrajudicial killings, and enforced disappearances. Hundreds of demonstrators took to the streets in Nairobi on Thursday, setting vehicles on fire and clashing with police, who responded with tear gas to disperse the crowds.
Protesters specifically called for the resignation of Deputy Police Chief Eliud Lagat, who filed a formal complaint against Ojwang just days before his death. Lagat alleged that an X (formerly Twitter) account linked to Ojwang had published “continuous false and malicious publications” targeting him personally, according to IPOA’s investigative report.
The backlash over Ojwang’s death has exposed deeper fissures in Kenya’s security system, with watchdog groups and civil society organizations accusing authorities of using intimidation and violence to silence dissent and muzzle critical voices online.
Kenya’s national police service issued an apology for its initial suicide claims, a rare move in a country where state security forces are often accused of operating with impunity.
IPOA has pledged a thorough and transparent investigation, but critics remain skeptical given Kenya’s checkered history of accountability in police-related deaths.
Ojwang’s death marks the latest flashpoint in a series of alleged abuses that have drawn international concern and emboldened local demands for systemic reform.
