Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja and Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) Director Mohammed Amin have asked the High Court to dismiss a case filed against them over alleged abductions. The case, brought by the Law Society of Kenya (LSK), sought to compel the IG and the DCI chief to produce youths who had been abducted and had since gone missing.
LSK claimed that the disappearances pointed to police involvement and argued that the two senior officers should be held personally liable for the abduction of seven Kenyans on Christmas Eve.
Representing the police chiefs, lawyer Paul Nyamodi on Friday urged Justice Bahati Mwamuye to dismiss the case, arguing that it was unfair to compel his clients to produce individuals whose whereabouts were unknown. “If they are missing, a report should be filed, and once investigations are complete, appropriate action can be taken,” Nyamodi stated.
He further contended that the habeas corpus application was based on the assumption that the missing person’s whereabouts were unknown, and placing an obligation on his clients to “go and free them” would be “asking them to do something nearly impossible.”
Meanwhile, Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen maintained that the missing youths were not in police custody. Through his lawyer, Danstan Omari, Murkomen asserted that the police had been making genuine efforts to locate them and should be allowed to continue investigations without external interference.
Court Rejects IG and DCI’s Appeal
LSK filed the case alongside the families of Peter Muteti, Bernard Kavuli, Billy Mwangi, Gideon Kibet (also known as Kibet Burr), and his brothers Ronny Kiplagat and Steve Kavingo, all of whom were abducted on Christmas Eve. The suit named several state agencies and officials, including the IG, National Police Service Commission (NPSC), DCI, National Intelligence Service (NIS), Interior Cabinet Secretary, Attorney General, and Director of Public Prosecutions.
After failing to appear in court multiple times, Kanja and Amin finally presented themselves on 30 January 2025, denying that the missing individuals were in police custody. On the same day, the body of Martin Mwau was found at Nairobi Funeral Home (formerly City Mortuary), the same location where Mutumwa Musyoki’s remains had been discovered earlier.
On 11 February 2025, the Court of Appeal declined to suspend the ongoing proceedings at the High Court. In rejecting their appeal, Judge Patrick Kiage directed the state to locate the missing persons.
Kanja and Amin had sought to halt the habeas corpus proceedings before Judge Mwita, arguing that the High Court had wrongfully issued an order without verifying whether the missing persons were indeed in police custody.
Two Missing Persons Found Dead, One Still Unaccounted For
Following the legal battle, two of the missing individuals were found dead. The body of Martin Mwau was discovered at Nairobi Funeral Home, the same facility where Mutumwa Musyoki’s body was found. Reports later revealed that both bodies had been delivered to the mortuary on 17 December, just a day after they were allegedly abducted from Mlolongo. However, the third missing individual, Karani Muema, remains unaccounted for to date.
