The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has arrested a Kibera-based police officer for soliciting a bribe before taking action in a defilement case.
Reportedly, the culprit, a police constable stationed at the Sarangombe Police Post, had sought a bribe of Ksh4,000 from a defilement victim's mother so that he could arrest the suspect.
The case had been filed earlier at the same station, after which the police constable demanded the bribe as an inducement for the arrest.
"The Commission reiterates its commitment to tackling bribery at service delivery points to restore public confidence and enhance service delivery to all Kenyans," the statement read in part.
However, his plan was cut short on Wednesday, August 13, when EACC swooped in on an operation that led to the arrest of two, including a civilian.
The civilian had reportedly received the bribe from the complainant on behalf of the police officer.
After the arrests, the two suspects were whisked off to the EACC’s Integrity Centre for processing, awaiting arraignment in court.
"The Commission reiterates its commitment to tackling bribery at service delivery points to restore public confidence and enhance service delivery to all Kenyans," EACC maintained after the arrests.
The arrest comes just days after EACC released a report naming police officers among the most corrupt professionals in the country.
In its National Ethics and Corruption Survey 2024 report on August 5, police officers topped the list of bribe receivers at 29.93 per cent.
"An analysis of bribe receivers by profession revealed that police officers (29.93 per cent), the National Registration Bureau (19.7 per cent), medical officers (9.53 per cent), officials from the land registry (7.39 per cent), and immigration officers (5.8 per cent) were the most bribe receivers," the report read in part.
It was further revealed that 99.5 per cent of respondents paid bribes in cash, while about 0.5 per cent paid in the form of food and drinks. 75.6 per cent paid the bribe before the service was offered, 18.5 per cent paid during the service, 3.1 per cent paid after the service, and 2.8 per cent paid partly before and partly after the service.
