Conflicting testimonies have emerged in the ongoing inquest into the death of activist Rex Masai, raising questions about police deployment and command structure during the June 2024 anti-finance bill protests.
At the center of the contradictions are two former senior officers who served in the Nairobi Central Police Division at the time of the demonstrations. The former Central Police Station Officer Commanding Station (OCS), Moses Mutai Shikuku, told the court earlier this month that plainclothes officers were deployed during the protests and were receiving instructions from higher authorities within the division. Despite being in charge of the station, Shikuku claimed some officers operated outside his command and were being coordinated independently.
“All officers under Central Police Station were under my command,” he testified, “but there were civilian clothes officers who were coordinated from the division.” However, he did not disclose who exactly issued orders to the plainclothes officers.
In response, the court recalled the then Central Sub-County Police Commander, Doris Mugambi, to clarify the chain of command during the protests. Her testimony, however, appeared to contradict Shikuku’s account.
Speaking before Milimani Principal Magistrate Geoffrey Onsarigo, Mugambi asserted that none of the officers took orders from the police headquarters during the demonstrations. She emphasized that her role as the Officer Commanding Police Division (OCPD) did not include direct deployment of officers. Instead, she explained that OCSs from various stations including Central, Kamukunji, Ngara, KICC, and Parliament were independently responsible for deploying officers within their respective jurisdictions.
“Each OCS was to take care of their area of jurisdiction within Nairobi Central Sub-County,” she said. “I was not directly in charge of any junior officer.”
Mugambi also noted that determining the identity of the officer involved in the shooting could be aided by accessing the official deployment register for that day, which would clarify who was stationed where. She further pointed out that identifying the precise location of the shooting would be crucial, especially in determining whether a civilian could have been involved.
“Police do not have a monopoly on firearms,” she said, suggesting that a licensed civilian firearm holder might have been in the area at the time of the shooting.
She also revealed that, according to reports from the OCSs under her command, no live ammunition was officially used during the demonstrations.
The inquest into the death of Rex Masai is scheduled to continue on July 16, 2025, with more witnesses expected to provide their accounts.
