Following the death of Albert Ojwang in police custody, protests began on 17 June 2025 with demands for the immediate resignation and prosecution of the Deputy Inspector General, Eliud Langat, who later stepped down to enable Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) investigations to proceed.
However, as the protests reportedly turned violent, the police responded with live ammunition and tear gas. A viral video surfaced of an officer beating up and shooting an unarmed street vendor Boniface Kariuki who is currently in critical condition and in the Intensive Care Unit of Kenyatta National Hospital in Nairobi. Two police officers involved have been arrested, interdicted and are being held in custody while investigations are underway. In connection with Ojwang’s death, six people have been charged with murder including three police officers in the High Court in Kibera. All six people pleaded not guilty and currently are being held in custody without bail as investigations continue.
Both the general public and civil society organisations have strongly condemned these incidents of police brutality, citing them as evidence of systemic abuse and a breakdown in police accountability. The Ojwang case was not simply a catalyst for these protests, it had also been a continuation of grievances that had developed over the previous year during the June 2024 Finance Bill protests, over 39 civilians had been killed in protests and multiple detained in police custody had alarmed many and illustrated an ominous and growing impunity for law enforcement.