Kisii, Kenya, Jun 27- A 16-year-old girl was shot dead in Kisii County, during protests over the mysterious death of a local boda boda operator identified as Eric Ochanda while in Police custody.
Agitated locals had gone to Rioma Police station, where they started pelting stones, while demanding for answers- over what led to the death of Ochanda. But it is not clear at what point the girl was killed.
After hours of confrontation, police started firing in the air ‘to scare’ them away, during the running battles that went up to late evening on Saturday.
“I was informed that my daughter had been killed and taken to the mortuary since I was not around. I had gone to sell charcoal so that I can get money to feed my family,” the girl’s father, Joseph Makori told Shahidi News.
“When I got to the morgue, I confirmed it was my third born daughter who was killed. It is very painful. What danger did she pose to police?”
The girl was a third born child in a family of three, and was still in Primary school according to her father.
The incident happened in Kitutu Chache North Constituency in Rioma area.
The girl’s uncle Patrick Ototo, who was among the first to go to the local mortuary said “police from another station took her body there.”
“Our girl was in Rioma, how did police from another police station take her body to the mortuary? We want to know the truth,” Ototo told Shahidi News.
The family is calling for justice, for their loved one.
Kisii County Commander Francis Kooli said investigations were underway, but blamed the locals for attacking the police.
“They started provoking the police. They could be heard saying shoot us, shoot us…clearly, that is wrong. There is a legal way of seeking redress and institutions like the Independent Policing Oversight Authority,” he said.
“I am urging the locals to be calm and follow the law. When you start engaging the police officers, that is wrong.”
But it is not clear what offence the 16-year-old committed. Was she hit by a stray bullet or not?
Did she pose any threat to the police?
Another person is said to have been shot dead during the protests, but Shahidi News did not independently verify the reports.
Five other people are in various hospitals in Kisii County, after they suffered gunshot injuries.
-What provoked the protests? –
Tension started building up in the area after the residents learnt that the 25-year-old boda boda operator had died while in police custody.
Ochanda was being held at Rioma Police Station awaiting to be transferred to a prison facility, after he failed to raise a Sh8,000 fine for flouting COVID-19 rules.
While residents read foul play following his death, police said the suspect felt unwell while in custody.
He was rushed to hospital according to police, where he died. Locals who spoke to Shahidi News said the man was not sick.
A postmortem examination is set to be conducted to establish the cause of death.
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