Former Kamukunji OCS Chief Inspector Robert Mugo on Monday denied any involvement in any deaths including that of Rex Maasai during last year’s maandamano that left many dead.
While testifying in the inquest into the death of Rex, Mugo told court that even though what they encountered were criminals they did not kill any of the youths are alleged.
“The individuals we encountered were not peaceful demonstrators but criminals engaging in looting,” Mugo said.
He told court that some of them were armed while others were not armed adding that on that day he
deployed about 60 officers to the area.
Interestingly, he says none of the police officers deployed carried firearms saying they only had teargas and batons (rungus) which were used.
Mugo emphasized that out of the 300 officers under his command at Kamukunji, only a specific group was assigned to the lower CBD, and none were in civilian clothing.
He said that none of the officers deployed to the area were armed, and those with firearms were engaged in different duties elsewhere.
“There was no killing under my jurisdiction in the lower CBD. No reports have been made about civilian injuries from our operations,” the court heard.
Mugo, along with other police officers who have testified, consistently maintained that the demonstrations in their area were not peaceful, but rather violent and criminal in nature. They said they were not responding to protesters but to looters who had infiltrated the CBD, threatening public safety and property.
The former OCS also noted a lack of operational coordination once the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) joined the response.
“We received direct orders from Madam Dorris, who instructed us to secure the lower CBD. After the KDF came in, there was no coordination,” he said.
