Mystery of whereabouts of rogue officers linked to researcher's murder

Slain Mental Health Researcher Dr Victoria Mutiso.[Courtsey]

Inspector Kenneth Kipkemboi Sang and Constable Collins Kiplangat Bett, the two officers linked to the broad daylight execution of mental health researcher Dr Victoria Nthunya Mutiso are still on the run, three days after investigators linked them to the cold-blooded murder.

Kipkemboi, the officer in charge of Nderi Police Post in Kikuyu of Kiambu County was identified as the link person between financiers and the operational team assembled to eliminate Dr Mutiso. Currently on the run, the senior officer provided the murder weapon – a Mini Jericho pistol loaded with 12 rounds of ammunition. 

Like Kipkemboi, detectives place Kiplangat at the scene of crime. His role on the July 29 murder within Mawensi area of Upper Hill, has not clearly been explained. The rogue officer is based at Thogoto Police Station.

Speaking at a church function in Kiambaa of Kiambu County, former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua yesterday claimed the two rogue officers were arrested and immediately released following a phone call from Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen.

 According to Gachagua, Inspector Kipkemboi was seized with Thogoto area last Thursday while Constable Kiplangat was arrested on his way to Momabasa around Mazeras. That the officers were set free after Murkomen called Directorate of Criminal Investigations boss Mohamed Amin.

 “We are asking Mr Amin, these officers are in Kenya, they are killers, they have killed Dr Mutiso, and you have confirmed they participated in the murder, why then are you releasing them after Murkomen called you,” stated Rigathi who was the fisrt to blew the whistle over involvement of officers in the murder.

Constable Elijah Kibelion Kimoi of Karinde Police Post is said to have pulled the killer trigger, ending the life of Dr Mutiso at Mawensi area in Upper Hill as she headed to work at around 9:23 am. 

Kibelion was arrested on Friday on the day  Amin revealed the involvement in the murder, of uniformed police officers in collaboration with civilians, some who are already in custody. 

“The involvement of these rogue officers represents a grave betrayal of the uniform and public trust. The directorate will pursue them with the full force of the law,” said Amin.

 Kibelion is likely to be arraigned in court today as detectives hunt down Kipkemboi and Kiplangat who went underground after the murder of the renowned psychiatrist was engaged in a bitter property row involving her husband and the man’s former wife.

Efforts to get comments from Amin and police spokesman Muchiri Nyaga over the search efforts for the two rogue officers on the run proved futile.

The involvement of the three officers continues to turn the spotlight on Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen with critics accusing him of being unsuitable to hold the critical docket.

“I don’t think the current CS (Murkomen) is the right man for the job. He is unable to steer the reforms agenda within the National Police Service and is only obsessed at issuing threats at the opposition than focusing on ensuring Kenyans are safe,” said Peter Kiama, Executive Director, Haki Yetu Organisation.

He accused Murkomen of running down a rogue National Police Service (NPS) whose command and control structure has collapsed, leading to indiscipline with the rank and file.

“The system has no capacity to hold to account rogue police officers, and the indiscipline has escalated to the extent goons are now being outsourced to carry out political violence,” said Kiama.

 

According to the veteran human rights defender, the problem stretches back to eight years when police were accused of killing 114 people in 2018. Then, Kiama was Executive Director of the Independent Medico-Legal Unit (IMLU) that censured police for lacking accountability over gross abuse of human rights and dignity.

“The involvement of police officers in the killing of Dr Mutiso shouldn’t be surprising; after all the National Police Service has been rogue since 2018 when I was at IMLU. It had reached a point where superiors feared junior officers,” noted Kiama.

He blamed President Willaim Ruto of abandoning his promise of professionalizing the Service and ending abductions, extrajudicial killings, and enforced disappearances. 

“Sadly, it is under Ruto the regression is worse. This presidency has watered down the reforms agenda by taking us back to the dark days when the police was an appendix of the executive. We’re no seeing the gains being rolled back with the establishment of the National

Government Administration Police Unit to work under administrative officers and chiefs,” stated Kiama adding that killing of Dr Mutiso should have led to the sacking of Murkomen.

Gachagua expressed concern that a pity that law enforcers who have been trained to protect lives and property are the ones being hired to kill. 

He claimed the killers of the psychiatrist each paid Sh500,000 to carry out the mission and termed Kikuyu Police Station a crime scene where a Chief Inspector of Police being shielded by a senior politician is the leader of the killer squads. 

“It is good for Kenyans to know the woman was killed because people wanted her land to sell it for Sh1.5 billion; that was the motive. So they had to kill her because you cannot just kill without a reason. That Kikuyu Police Station is a crime scene where all killings in Kenya are planned,” said Gachagua.

 Mutiso was in taxi when the car encountered a black Toyota Prado that had partially blocked the road. Victor Chunguli, the driver of the Uber taxi told investigators that he slowed down before seeing a person seated at the left rear window open fire.

 The bullets struck Dr Mutiso who was pronounced dead on arrival at Kenyatta National Hospital where the mother of two had been rushed.

Detectives believe the killing was motivated by a long-standing land dispute that is subject of a civil case at Machakos Law courts.

 Two civilians, Daniel Mwangi Njoroge and Kelvin Ngugi Kinuthia are in custody for participating in the murder.

 Mwangi was the driver of the Prado registration KDH 600A used to block the taxi. He coordinated logistics, facilitated the movement of the execution team and played a key organizational role in the conspiracy. While Njoroge was indentified as the rider who ferried the shooter to the scene.