A police officer accused in the fatal shooting of protester Rex Masai has rejected a set of photographs that Kenya’s Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) projected in court to place him at the scene. Appearing before Milimani Principal Magistrate Geoffrey Onsarigo on Wednesday, July 16, 2025, officer Isaiah Murangiri Ndumba maintained he is not the individual shown in widely shared protest images wearing a blue shirt, black cap, blue trousers, black shoes, and holding what appears to be a police walkie‑talkie.
IPOA investigators told the court the images were captured during the anti‑Finance Bill demonstrations in Nairobi in June 2024 and match Murangiri through facial similarities and a distinctive wristband in Kenyan colours. The photographs viral on social media after Masai’s death were displayed via projector for side‑by‑side comparison in the packed Milimani courtroom.
Murangiri disputed each element of the identification. He testified that he did not report for duty on June 18, 2024, having obtained permission to care for a sick child, and therefore could not be the officer IPOA says was photographed that day. He added that although he was on duty when protests intensified and Masai was fatally shot on June 20, 2024, he was assigned around the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC), not the location depicted. (Some statements in court referenced June 20, 2025, but the killing of Masai has been recorded as occurring on June 20, 2024.)
During cross‑examination, a lawyer representing the Law Society of Kenya asked Murangiri to reveal the area beneath his left ear after pointing to what appears to be a dark birthmark below the same ear on the person in the photos. Murangiri replied that he has no such mark. The lawyer requested zoomed enlargements and suggested the officer could verify the point in a mirror later.
The wristband also drew scrutiny. IPOA argued that the same Kenyan‑themed band appears on images from separate protest days, strengthening its attribution. Murangiri denied ever wearing the item and insisted the photos show someone else.
Murangiri further told the court he served with a special Alpha Mike squad that assembled at KICC for briefing alongside other officers some in uniform, others in civilian clothes deployed to manage the unrest. He said the unit took operational direction from the Officer Commanding Police Division rather than the Central Police Station’s OCS.
The inquest resumes on Thursday, July 17, 2025, at 2:00 p.m. Further testimony, image analysis, and cross‑examination are expected as proceedings continue in Nairobi.
