A photo of a man who reportedly aided the apprehension of three Kamiti escapees went viral on social media with Kenyans poking holes on his theory that he is a civilian.
In one of the photos that surfaced online, the eyewitness identified as Paul Mwaniki, is seen wearing a uniform belonging to a state security agency, specifically the National Youth Service (NYS).
Kenyans online confused the NYS outfit to one worn by prison wardens owing to the colour coding and close-knitting.
"He is a Prison warden?" blogger Robert Alai wondered, prompting hundreds of comments from Kenyans of all divides.
Speaking to Kenyans.co.ke, however, Mwaniki confirmed that he was the person photographed in the uniform when he served in the National Youth Service (NYS) as an officer over a decade ago. He further shared his service number which was 107492 at the time.
"I'm not a prison warden. On August 5, 2009, I was recruited to the NYS. I trained in Gilgil and that is a photo I took while there. People are confusing the NYS beret with that of the prison warden because they are quite similar," he stated.
Mwaniki further confirmed that he has all the paramilitary skills acquired during the NYS training.
The witness hit media headlines on Thursday, November 18, after taking a selfie with three convicts and indicated that he, with the help of other villagers, spotted the trio at Endau Malalani Ward in Kitui County and led their apprehension.
The eyewitness narrated that the three travelled almost 160 kilometres, from Nairobi to the remote village in search of their route to Somalia through Boni Forest.
"They walked in some sneaky way creating a zig-zag formation and crossed the road from one point to another. They also seemed to avoid any contact with other residents compelling them to walk through thorny bushes."
Mwaniki noted that they had at some point asked the residents for direction leading to Boni Forest, a query that raised more suspicion.
"They were not aware of the roads in the area, they were clearly visitors. We noticed them immediately they set their feet in Endau Malalani Ward. I am wondering if they were ferried in a vehicle or an alternative means to get here," he stated.
Mwaniki approached three law enforcement officers from within the area and led them to where he first set his eyes on the escapees.
Together with the officers, they managed to apprehend one but the other two temporarily fled.
The two were, however, apprehended minutes later as they were getting deeper into the forest.
