Former Kenya Prisons officer and activist Jackson Kihara, popularly known as Cop Shakur, has spoken about hitting rock bottom several months after losing his job.
In a post on Instagram on Saturday, Shakur, who gained popularity by supporting the Gen Z protesters in June and July 2025, revealed that he was in debt and had already had his property auctioned.
However, he insisted that his current situation was not related to him leaving his job, as he had made plans for how to survive when he left.
"I’m at my lowest moment. I’ve lost everything. I’m in debt, I’ve been auctioned, I have an arrest warrant against me, and I can’t pay my bills or provide for my daughter. I’ve tried to stay strong, but life has been heavy," the statement read in part.
"After losing my job illegally because of my activism, something I’ll never regret standing for, I had actually planned myself well. What I’m going through now has nothing to do with losing that job. Things got worse later because of the businesses I invested in."
He went on to recount how his financial troubles began after a failed December gig left him over Ksh1 million in debt.
Shakur, who had been making a living through his car hire business and events, said that the rain had ruined an event he had organised in December 2024. Shortly afterwards, his cars started getting into accidents and breaking down.
As well as having money problems, he admitted that he was suffering emotionally due to personal issues, including his wife allegedly cheating on him with his best friend.
"My mental health struggles started after my ex-wife cheated on me with my best friend on my own bed. I found them. That moment broke me completely," he stated.
"But I don’t blame her, because I wasn’t there for her. I take responsibility for my part in how things fell apart."
Having reached rock bottom, the former cop revealed that he had even contemplated taking his life and even attempting to do so via several means, unsuccessfully.
"There was a time I felt so hopeless that I tried to take my own life not once, but several times. I swallowed pills, tried to suffocate myself, even tried hanging - but every time, I woke up. Maybe God wasn’t done with me yet," he stated.
The former officer has been arrested a couple of times since being interdicted in July 2024 over anti-government protests, and still grapples with arrest warrants and ongoing court cases.
Prior to his dismissal, he had reportedly been subjected to a series of disciplinary actions, including frequent transfers to 'hardship areas', suspension and interdiction.
Just over a month ago, on August 26, he announced his departure from the Fighting Brutality and Impunity (FBI) group, an activist group consisting of former security officials, just a month after joining it.
