- Joshua Okayo earlier accused police of threatening him after seeking answers over Albert Ojwang’s death
- While demanding the resignation of Deputy Inspector General Eliud Langat, Okayo was allegedly assaulted by the same cop who had previously marked him
- He was rushed to the hospital, with Kenyans recounting his accusation against the officer at Central Police Station
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An activist who claimed that a police officer threatened him after going to the Central Police Station to demand answers following Albert Ojwang’s death in police custody has been injured.
Did police target Joshua Okayo?
Joshua Okayo, a human rights defender, said that police officers threatened his life after telling him that he was ‘marked.’
According to Okayo, he tried to report the matter at the Central Police Station, but the officers denied him entry and urged him to file a report privately.
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However, he would have none of it and demanded a transparent process.
Recounting the Monday, June 9, incident, he said that one officer directly aimed a teargas canister at his feet.
Okayo approached the cop to ask why he had done so, and that is when the law enforcement officer allegedly threatened him.
He noted that he refused advice from senior officers to privately report the matter, stating that he did not want to handle matters behind closed doors.
Footage from the scene showed Okayo and the implicated officer in a heated exchange, as another officer tried to intervene.
On Thursday, June 12, Okayo was injured in the CBD while calling for the Deputy Inspector General of Police, Eliud Langat, to resign.
A photo from the protests showed Okayo on a boda boda, being ferried to the hospital.
“Police beat him with a club. He can’t talk, and his head is twitching! There’s a policeman who marked him on Monday, and the same policeman beat him today! This fight needs us all! All who care for justice,” X user @wanjirunjira wrote.
In an update, Wanjiru said that Okayo was doing better after being tended to in the hospital.
“His vitals are okay. Twitching has stopped. He can talk properly, but his leg is numb. He’s getting an X-ray. He is hurt.”
Kenyans on X reacted by saying:
@SubtleNarrator:
“Kenyan police want things to escalate.”
@Danny_Gonah:
“I remember he mentioned that a certain officer told him he was marked.”
@TeRaiona254:
“Police cannot learn something even when it’s fresh in their mind that we have a recording saying they have marked him.”
@AtwoliiYa:
“They never learn.”
@CiiruBrenda:
“Praying he’ll be okay.”
How did protester unmask cop?
In other news, Shakira Wafula, a protester, went viral for trying to unmask an officer wearing a balaclava.
Footage from the incident showed the young woman confronting the officer, who hid his face.
She grabbed the mask and tugged at it, creating a commotion.
The officer responded by trying to hit Shakira with the barrel of his gun, but she fled the scene. The other protesters cheered as she disappeared into the crowd.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
