Two police officers deny being at scene of Rex Masai’s killing

Benson Kamau and Isaiah Muragiri, two police officers who are persons of interest in the killing of Rex Masai during the June anti-Finance Bill demonstrations in Nairobi have denied being at the scene where the man was shot.

Masai died from excessive bleeding after being shot by police during the demos, sustaining a fatal wound to his thigh.

Constable Kamau told the court that on June 20, he was armed with a pistol with 15 rounds and deployed at Museum Hill, near the Kileleshwa-Parklands junction, together with his colleague, also armed with a pistol.

“We were assigned to operate undercover in civilian clothing along Uhuru Highway. Our assignment was to collect intelligence. The area where we were stationed remained calm throughout the day until around 6 p.m. when I returned my firearm,” the officer said.

"I never went to the CBD the entire week, nor did I fire any shots with my gun. I was in plain clothes because I was gathering intelligence.”

He said after the assignment, he took a taxi home.

“If there is evidence of my phone number being active in the CBD, I have no comment. I only started receiving greetings ('salamu') from members of the Gen-Z community, accusing me of killing Rex."

Meanwhile, Corporal Ndumba said he was issued with a tear gas launcher on that day, where he headed to the KICC entrance with a colleague.

“I was in plain clothes, wearing trousers, the colour of which I cannot remember, and a black jacket. My face was not covered,” Ndumba told the court.

“I am not the person the witnesses are referring to. I did not interact with any protestors, and the vehicle we used was a Mahindra, but I cannot recall its number plate. I never fired even a single tear gas canister that day because where I was there were no demonstrators."

Corporal Ndumba said he could not understand why he was implicated in Masai’s death, adding: “Maybe they are haters. I don’t know Rex Masai, and I didn’t have a gun capable of killing someone on that day.”

During the hearing, the two officers were asked to step out of the courtroom due to the sensitivity of the witness testimonies.

Masai’s father, Crispine Odawa testified that he received a call from his wife that evening, notifying him about his son’s shooting.

She told him that Masai had been shot and was dead at Bliss Hospital in the Nairobi city centre, Odawa narrated, where went immediately.

“There were visible injuries, including an open wound on Rex's left thigh. The doctor at the hospital stated it was a bullet wound, and that the bullet was still lodged in his thigh. However, an unidentified police officer from Central Police Station at Bliss Hospital refused to let us take the body. Later, they transferred it to City Mortuary,” the father said.