A section of youth in Githurai held demonstrations on Thursday, September 10, along the Thika Superhighway.
The angered crowd blocked the service lane with burning tyres and rocks protesting against extrajudicial killings in the area.
Holding placards and chanting, the protestors claimed that police were killing youth in Githurai.
Watch the video of the protest below:
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Police intervened and lobbed teargas at the youth in a bid to disperse them.
The chaos resulted in heavy traffic on the service lanes off the busy highway with motorists advised to use the middle section of the road to avoid damage to their vehicles.
Residents claimed that a young man who was reported missing had been killed by police with his body recovered in the morning.
Cases of police brutality have been reported with the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) in June 2020, affirming that police officers were involved in the killing of at least 15 people since authorities imposed a coronavirus curfew in late March.
"Some 15 deaths and 31 incidents where victims sustained injuries have been directly linked to actions of police officers during the curfew enforcement," IPOA noted revealing that it had received 87 complaints.
Earlier in the year, over 200 protesters from Mathare slums staged a demonstration against police brutality and demanded justice for the victims of extrajudicial killings.
The protest was mostly composed of young people and mothers who carried signs with the names of friends, neighbours and sons killed in police operations in recent years.
"I am here to protest for our youth who have died in the hands of the police without any wrongdoings and we are saying enough is enough. As mothers, many of our youths have been killed while being labeled as thieves," Mathare resident Rahma Wako stated.
