Opposition Chief Raila Odinga’s legal team has written to the Officer Commanding Station (OCS) in Embakasi, Nairobi, claiming that they have identified two police officers who fired bullets at Raila’s car during a peaceful demonstration. The lawyers from Awele Jackson Advocates said that with the help of the public, they were able to identify the officers who acted on the command of the Inspector General of the National Police Service and/or the State.
In the letter, the lawyers alleged that on March 29, 2023, Raila was in the Pipeline area of Embakasi South Constituency when he encountered a group of armed police officers who were stationed in the very direction that the peaceful demonstration was moving towards. According to the lawyers, the officers ‘maliciously and with the clear intention of violently disrupting the peaceful demonstration, indiscriminately’ lobbed teargas canisters and fired ten live ammunition at Raila’s convoy.
The legal team claimed that the police officers skillfully targeted Raila’s vehicle with the intention of causing his death, and that the officers were acting on the command of the Inspector General of the National Police Service and/or the State.
The letter reads, “With malice aforethought, they attempted to commit a felony, to wit; to cause the death of our client, an offence under the Penal code.” The lawyers urged the police to investigate the matter and bring those responsible to justice.
Raila’s lawyers also claimed that the police officers sprayed pink-dyed water at Raila’s convoy, thereby provoking mayhem and violent reactions from the demonstrators. They said that the reckless and violent use of force by the police on the material day is well documented and within the knowledge of the police and the public at large.
