Armed individuals alleged to be police officers were caught on camera manhandling a jogger in Mombasa County on Tuesday, December 1.
The video was shared by Muslims for Human Rights (MUHURI) a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) based in Mombasa.
MUHURI claimed that the jogger, Ahmed Amana, was accosted at Mama Ngina Waterfront Park for allegedly wearing a mask inappropriately. The officers accused him of lowering the mask to his face chin.
Four plainclothes officers could be seen pulling the jogger, in a blue shirt, towards a Toyota Probox which had parked by the roadside.
"They were armed with a pistol and AK47 and did not identify themselves. Why should they use such force?
"The officers wanted to bundle the jogger into the trunk of a Toyota Probox. We have witnessed similar cases where police enforce disappearances. Most victims end up untraced. We have taken up the matter to ensure action is taken against these rogue officers.," the human rights group said.
A passer-by who had attempted to rescue Amana from the police was confronted by the officers, with one pulling out a pistol and shoving him away.
It was later claimed that the rescuer was an unarmed General Service Unit (GSU) police. Amana was, however, released after the officers aborted their mission, according to the human rights group.
On Saturday, November 28, Malaba residents protested after a 27-year-old man was allegedly shot dead by a police officer for not wearing a mask. Ezekiel Odera was rushed to hospital but died while he was being attended to. His brother said.
The case came a month after two police officers were arrested in Likuyani, Kakamega county in connection with the suspected murder of Denis Lusava.
Lusava was arrested on Wednesday, October 7 for allegedly not wearing a face mask. However, according to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), the suspect was arrested for assaulting a police officer.
Inspector General of Police Hillary Mutyambai on Thursday, November 5, directed that anyone found flouting the Covid-19 rules, would pay an instant fine of Ksh20,000. He directed his officers to avoid arresting suspects but impose cash fines as jails were congested.
