The Directorate of Public Prosecution (DPP) on Monday, May 5, 2025, has dropped charges against eight of the 12 police officers in Baby Pendo’s murder case.

Instead, only four out of the initial 12 officers took a plea.

The DPP charged police officers John Chengo, Linah Kosgey, Cyprine Wankio and James Rono with different charges, including that of murder and torture in the baby Pendo case.

The first accused, John Chengo, has been charged with murder as a crime against humanity contrary to section 6(1)(b) as read with section 6(3) and section 7(1)(f) (f) of the International Crimes Act, No. 16 of 2008 Laws of Kenya, and Article 28(b) of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.

Charge sheet amended

According to the amended charge sheet, on August 12, 2017, Chengo, being the General Service Unit Inspector (GSUI) of police operationally in charge of Platoon One, deployed officers in Nyalenda and Kachok roundabout, knowing they were committing or about to commit crimes.

Chengo, as the GSUI, is accused of failing to prevent his officers from committing the heinous acts which led to the murder of baby Pendo and torturing of 28 other people.

“On August 12, 2017, at about 1:30am, at Kilo Junction, the General Service Unit Inspector of Police failed to take the necessary and reasonable measures within his power to prevent or repress the unlawful killing of Baby Samantha Pendo by the said officers deployed under your directive authority and control,” part of the charge sheet read.

Linah Kosgey, who at that time of the incident was the Nyalenda police post commanding officer, has also been charged with murder as a crime against humanity for failing to take all the necessary and reasonable measures within her power to prevent the unlawful killing of baby Pendo on August 12, 2017.

Chengo, Linah and Wankio have also been charged with torture after police officers under them forcefully broke into one of the victim’s houses on August 11, 2017, at around 11 am, beating him on his legs, hands and back using a rungu, causing him pain and suffering.

According to the charges, on August 12, 2017, at around 2 pm, police officers deployed to calm the unrest after the elections tortured one victim by beating and lobbing tear gas on her after they found her seated outside her house in Nyalenda.

“Police officers under your effective authority and control found a victim seated outside her house in Nyalenda, enquired why she was outdoors and then hit her using a rungu before lobbing tear gas on her,” part of the charge sheet read.

On the same date, the officers forcefully entered a house of another victim and assaulted her and the husband in the presence of their children.

Later, they lodged teargas in the house of another victim before forcefully entering her house, assaulting her using a rungu, leaving her semi-conscious.

The ruthless officers, on the same date, slapped another victim on her face and hit her on the arm using a rungu before robbing her of Ksh40,000 she was depositing in a nearby M-Pesa shop.

They later moved to Kowino Open Air Market and found another lady who was selling her merchandise, hit her on her knees with batons, and lobbed tear gas at her when she ran away for safety, thereby affecting her eyesight to date.

The armed officers then stormed into the house of another victim, purporting to be looking for young men, but turned on her and assaulted her without cause with rungus and batons, leaving her in pain.

Other victims, including children, were assaulted on their necks, thighs, shoulders and backs, and their household items damaged.