A 35-year-old fisherman died in a police holding cell at Kipasi Police Post in Suba North Constituency, Homa Bay County, raising fresh concerns over the security of individuals being detained in police custody.

The incident comes after the controversial death of social media influencer and teacher Albert Ojwang at the hands of the police.

The fisherman identified as Calvin Omondi Onditi was arrested on Saturday for allegedly having an unnatural act with a goat.

Area residents alerted the authorities, and he was later taken into custody by Kipasi Police, and by morning, Omondi had died.

Police claimed he used his trousers to hang himself in the holding cell.

The detention of Omondi ended tragically when he was found dead in the cell.

The police stated Omondi died by suicide by hanging himself on a grill with his own trousers, though the family dismissed the police narrative, questioning the bruises around his neck and called for a probe over the incident.

The family pointed out that the evidence around the neck suggested foul play.

“We were told our brother had died, and it was shocking, yet he had just been transferred to Mbita, and the next thing we know, he is dead. When we got there, we saw him hanging,” said one of the family members.

The family has also criticised the police for moving the body from the police post before relatives arrived.

Homa Bay Teaching and Referral Hospital CEO Vincent Oduor stated that preliminary observations indicated signs of strangulation, noting a noose made from trousers and a bitten tongue.