Haji issues stern warning to rogue police officers

Police officers found to have committed assault and other acts of unlawful violence will be charged and held responsible, Director of Public Prosecutions, Noordin Haji (pictured) has said.

Speaking at a press briefing yesterday, Mr Haji said there are 171 cases against police being reviewed by his office from the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA).

“My office has received a number of files from IPOA and the Directorate of Criminal Investigations’ office.

“We have over 171 files from IPOA alone, and out of that almost 100 are before court,” said Haji. The event was attended by the Cabinet Secretary for the Ministry of Interior and Coordination of National Security Fred Matiang’i, Inspector General of Police Hilary Mutyambai and human rights organisations leaders. 

Although CS Matiang’i assured that all cases will be investigated he also defended the police saying they risk their lives in the line of duty and make sacrifices.

Local level

“The numbers of police officers we have lost to criminals as well as citizen brutality also reflects the tense relationship between police and citizens,” he noted.

Amnesty International Executive Director Houghton Irungu said working with police at local levels would help improve the situation.