Men cornered, beaten up in Zimmerman were mistaken for kidnappers: police

The two men were attacked while travelling in their vehicle, a Nissan Juke. [Courtesy]

Two men who were cornered and beaten up by an irate mob in Zimmerman, Nairobi on Saturday afternoon were not kidnappers as had been suspected by the residents, police have told The Standard.

The two men, who were driving in a Nissan Juke past Base Estate in Zimmerman, were cornered after word got round that a 2-year-old girl had been kidnapped in the estate.

Upon opening the doors of the men’s car, they saw the said-lost child.

It was then that the crowd descended on the duo with kicks, blows and all manner of crude weapons, while accusing the two of abducting the girl.

The girl’s mother, who had been attracted to the scene by the resultant melee, quickly defended the two against the allegations, saying she personally knew the men, and had given them the permission to go with the child.

Police arrived at the scene and rescued the duo before rushing them to hospital for urgent treatment.

The two had sustained severe injuries in different parts of their bodies, including the head.

Their vehicle was vandalised, and turned upside-down by the irate mob.

Kasarani OCPD Peter Mwanzo told The Standard the attacks stemmed from a case of mistaken identity.

“It’s wrong for members of the public to take the law into their own hands. For instance, in today’s case, they attacked the two based on mere suspicion, which was not founded on any concrete evidence. It would have been so unfortunate had they killed the two,” said Mwanzo.

“I’m urging Kenyans to let police do their work of enforcing law and order.”

The name ‘Zimmerman’ trended on Twitter on Saturday afternoon, with users lamenting that cases of child abduction have been on the rise in the estate.

Mwanzo, however, said only one kidnapping case has been reported, and that claims that at least ten children have gone missing from the estate in the last couple of months are exaggerated.

“I am urging Kasarani residents whose children have gone missing to report the cases soonest possible,” he said.

The wreckage of the Nissan Juke was towed to Kasarani Police Station.