About 25 police officers have been either arrested or charged in court with various criminal offences – including rape, murder and obtaining money by false pretences.

In one of the latest cases yesterday, an officer who is under interdiction was arrested for obtaining Sh250,000 from another officer by pretending he was in a position to influence his transfer to the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK), Nairobi.

Administration Police (AP) Constable Peter Kilonzi Mwove was arrested by DCI officers from Mutomo for obtaining money from Constable Dairus Nyamai Kimanzi of Emali Railway Police Station.

“The officer was arrested at Kyanguni town for obtaining money by false pretences. He will be arraigned in court as soon as investigations are complete,” a senior police officer told People Daily.

Sh250,000 swindle

The arrest comes barely a week after another corporal, Kennedy Okello Ojode, attached to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) Academy, was charged in court with obtaining Sh250,000 from a woman by pretending he could secure her employment in the police service.

The arraignment brings to at least eight the total number of police officers who have been charged in court with various offences, including murder, rape, and assault, in the past one week.

Just before the February 22, 2021, national police recruitment, Corporal Ojode invited a woman to the DCI Academy in South C, Nairobi. Earlier, he had assured her of help in joining the police service. 

He even offered her an invitation, which detectives later learnt was aimed at winning her confidence so as to dupe her.

Later, the woman and her family raised Sh250,000, which she deposited in the officer’s account. But she was never recruited and later learnt that she had been defrauded.

Police officers arrested and charged in court in the past week include Constable James Njuguna Ngige for the death of Wycliff Vincent Oduor, mastermind of the Sh74 million Standard Chartered Bank heist. The bank raid was on  September 2019.

He was charged alongside two former corporals: Joseph Ojode Obambo and Charles Kirimi, and constables Bashir Ali and Henry Mutai. On June 6, they were charged with the murder after the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) approved the charges. They are accused of killing Oduor on March 25, 2020.

Last week, a constable attached to Ukwala Police Station was arraigned at Ukwala Law Courts for allegedly raping a woman inside a holding cell at Sega Police Post. The woman had been arrested for not wearing a face-mask on April 12, 2021, in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Earlier,  four constables were charged at Bondo Law Courts for assaulting Samuel Odongo Okwero in December 2016. The officers were constables Sammy Kirui, who had been transferred to Kamagambo Police Station, Nicholas Ndalo of Ukwala Police Station, Felix Maobi, currently at Isebania Police Station, and Daniel Kimori of Uriri Police Station.

Extorting Sh80,000

Three weeks ago, four police officers based in Nairobi were arrested in Loitoktok for extorting Sh80,000 from a Tanzanian.

The officers, three based at Buruburu Police Station and one at Administration Police Uhuru Camp, had arrested the foreigner in Loitoktok and drove him to Nairobi, where they forced him to withdraw Sh80,000 from his account.

They went back to Loitoktok on another mission and stopped at a Shell petrol station on the Loitoktok-Emali Road. Acting on a tip, officers from Loitoktok station approached them but they sped off towards Loitoktok Airstrip in two vehicles, prompting a chase.

Upon arrest, the four were identified as Corporal Geoffrey Mwongela, Constable Alex Katana, and Constable Kelvin Njuguna, all from Buru Buru Police Station. The fourth was identified as Constable Tony Kororia of the AP Critical Infrastructure Police Unit (CIPU).

Kileleshwa station

In another case last month, officers from Kileleshwa Police Station arrested two foreigners on trumped up charges and extorted Sh50,000.

The officers, who have since been identified, were in civilian clothing and were patrolling in a civilian car on Rhapta Road, Nairobi.

Cases of extortion have been on the rise. According to police oversight bodies, rogue officers have been making arrests on trumped-up charges with the sole intention of extorting money.

In the past one month, at least 20 officers have been arrested for various criminal offences.