Nine Top Cops Interdicted Over Garissa University Massacre

Interior Cabinet Secretary Major (Rtd) General Joseph Nkaissery announced the interdiction of the nine top officials.

One of the officials, the Garissa County Commissioner Njenga Miiri is facing his second interdiction after being sent packing over his handling of the Mpeketoni attack in Lamu County last year.  

“To facilitate an independent investigation into Garissa terrorist attack, I have interdicted the administrative officers in North Eastern region,” said Nkaissery.

 Ernest Muniyi, the regional coordinator, and Njenga Miiri, the county commissioner, were among the top officers interdicted.

The two senior officers and seven others will now step aside to facilitate investigations.

The other affected officials are Christopher Muthee, the county commander of the administration police, Musa Yego, the county criminal investigations officer, Charles Wambugu, the county commander of the Kenya police, Benjamin Ong’ombe, the OCPD Garissa, John Cheruiyot Sawe the sub-county AP commander, Nicholas Kimanzi Mutuku the Anti-Terror Police Unit head in Garissa and Charles Ayoro, the deputy OCS, Garissa police station.

Nothing wrong with using police aircraft

“Every individual officer will be held personally responsible for any acts of commission and omission that endanger the lives and property of Kenyans,” added Nkaissery.

At the same time, Nkaissery defended the police airwing commandant Rogers Mbithi over his handling of the unit’s aircraft used by the GSU Recce squad for their Garissa mission.

He says that members of Mbithi’s family who flew aboard a police aircraft heading back to Nairobi from Mombasa had been duly authorized as the aircraft was returning from a training flight and did not delay the takeoff of the Recce squad.

“Indeed the aircraft was used to transport the family, but it is nothing out of the ordinary,” noted the CS.

A special body comprising officers from the Interior Ministry and the office of the Inspector General will lead a probe into the Garissa University college massacre in which 148 people were killed.