Fresh details have emerged in regard to a dramatic incident in which police shot dead eight suspects at Mukuru kwa Reuben slums in Nairobi on April 19.
Investigations conducted by anti-torture organisation Independent Medico-Legal Unit (IMLU), now indicate that the eight were killed in cold-blood.
Post-mortems conducted on the victims reportedly show that the suspects were shot while kneeling or lying on the ground, contrary to previous claims by police that the young men were shot while running away.
According to IMLU Executive Director Peter Kiama, each of the victims sustained multiple gunshot wounds in the upper and lower back.
"These findings also indicate that all were shot at close range and died immediately. These findings are a clear indication that indeed the deceased were summarily executed, contrary to earlier reports by the police that they shot eight armed gang members or that some were shot while fleeing," he said as quoted by the Standard.
Earlier on, Makadara OCPD Nehemiah Lagat said the gang was ambushed after officers received a tip-off, describing it as a big win in the fight against crime in the city.
Security agents claimed that undercover officers were informed of a 12-man gang that was terrorising area residents and rushed to the scene, where they managed to kill three suspects while two others escaped with gun wounds.
Read Also: 8 Shot Dead Planning Attack in Nairobi
While at the scene, the officers received alerts of a separate attack and on rushing there, they supposedly found other suspected gangsters robbing civilians, leading to a shootout which left three suspects dead.
Upon conducting a search around the area, two bodies of those who had escaped with gunshots were discovered after they succumbed to injuries.
During the incident, police said they recovered five home-made guns, eight rounds of ammunition and other crude weapons including knives.
