Video of Boda Boda Riders Stripping & Beating Lady Driver Causes Uproar

A canva of an unidentified lady being harassed by boda boda riders along Forest road, Nairobi on Monday, March 7.CANVA
A canva of an unidentified lady being harassed by boda boda riders along Forest road, Nairobi on Monday, March 7, 2022.
File

A video that captured suspected boda boda riders brutally assaulting a lady driver after a traffic incident along Forest Road, Nairobi, has gone viral and caused a national uproar over the rising insecurity in the country. 

The video seen by Kenyans.co.ke, went viral on Monday, March 7, although the police indicated that the assault occurred on Friday, March 4. It showed a crowd of young men roughing up the female driver as they attempted to force her out of the vehicle. 

The lady is captured on the video screaming for help as the group of men descended on her- ripping her clothes in the process. Fortunately, the lady's seat belt was still latched on.

An undated photo of boda boda riders in Nairobi
A photo of boda boda riders waiting for clients in Nairobi.
Photo
Kenya Pics

The video drew the ire of the majority of Kenyans who had called upon the National Police Service (NPS) and the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) to probe the matter and arrest the culprits. 

Police spokesperson Bruno Shioso confirmed to Kenyans.co.ke that the police were aware of the incident and were handling the matter. 

The National Police Service (NPS) later issued a statement, affirming that they had identified the perpetrators and would take stern action against them.

"The matter is under active investigations. We have since identified some of the perpetrators and they will be presented before a court of law upon completion of investigations," read part of the statement from NPS. 

The Proactive and Safety Association of Kenya (PROSAK) also issued a statement condemning the heinous act and urging a rapid response team to be dispatched in order to take action on the matter.

The association emphasized that the vile act violated the constitutional rights of the lady and was against the country's societal and cultural norms.

The body highlighted that there exists a cause for alarm among the public for the disorderly nature of the boda boda operators. 

"It has come to our attention that following a road traffic accident involving a silver saloon passenger vehicle being driven by a young lady, and a boda boda along Wangari Maathai (formerly Forest road), several riders surrounded the vehicle, forced the door open and physically harassed the lady to the point of stripping her half-naked in an attempt to force her out of the vehicle."

"The distraught lady is captured screaming in sheer terror during the incident. PROSAK strongly condemns this behaviour and calls upon the Inspector General of Police to assemble a rapid response team to deal with the now many incidents of this nature and further calls for the arrest and prosecution of those seen in the video clearly breaking the law in this particular incident," read part of the statement from the safety association.

Further, politicians and other influential people called for the DCI team to take rapid action on the issue.

"Honestly, violence against women should stop!!!! The video of the young lady being attacked and harassed in broad daylight in public at Forest Road is Traumatizing and Heartbreaking! DCI and NPS please do something! This cannot be happening," Nadia Abdalla, the Chief Administrative Secretary in the Ministry of ICT complained in a statement. 

Undated Photo of Officers at DCI Headquarters Along Kiambu Road
Photo of Officers at DCI Headquarters Along Kiambu Road
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