The Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) has revealed that CCTV hard disks at Nairobi’s Central Police Station were suspiciously formatted and replaced just hours after the death of Albert Ojwang in police custody. This startling disclosure was made to the National Assembly’s Security Committee on Thursday, June 12.
IPOA chairperson Isaac Hassan stated that digital video recorder (DVR) logs indicated the operating discs were changed and formatted on June 8, 2025, at precisely 07:23:29 and 07:23:48 hours. Ojwang had been booked at the station the previous night June 7 at 21:35 under Occurrence Book number 136/7/6/2025.
“This appears to have been a well-planned move to erase surveillance footage related to Ojwang’s final hours,” said Hassan, adding that the CCTV shutdown affected critical areas of the station. “Somebody was called to disable a specific section of the system, but he could only shut down the entire system.”
IPOA has since launched a full investigation, recording statements from police officers and other individuals present during the incident. Hassan requested a closed-door session with the committee to disclose sensitive information, which Committee Chair Gabriel Tongoyo accepted, but not before IPOA shared non-sensitive updates publicly.
The incident has triggered public outrage, with IPOA Vice Chair Anne Wanjiku stating that the CCTV system at the Officer Commanding Station (OCS)’s office had been tampered with and dismissing suicide as a possible cause of death. “The autopsy and preliminary findings rule out the theory of suicide,” she affirmed.
Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja told the committee that Deputy Inspector General Eliud Lagat would step aside if implicated in the probe. “No one will be shielded from accountability,” Kanja said.
Ojwang’s death and the alleged cover-up have ignited national demands for justice and greater transparency in law enforcement operations, as both Parliament and IPOA intensify investigations into the troubling case
