Kenya’s latest wave of unrest began after 31-year-old blogger and teacher Albert Ojwang was found dead in police custody on 8 June. Ojwang had been arrested following online posts accusing Deputy Inspector General of Police Eliud Lagat of corruption. A post-mortem contradicted police claims of self-inflicted injuries, and prosecutors have since charged six people, including three officers, with his murder while a separate constable was arrested earlier in the probe.
News of Ojwang’s death triggered rolling demonstrations from 12 June, with crowds demanding accountability and the resignation of senior police officials. Security forces repeatedly used tear gas, and on 17 June an officer was filmed shooting 22-year-old street vendor Boniface Kariuki at close range in downtown Nairobi. Two policemen were later arrested over the incident, but Kariuki succumbed to severe head injuries on 30 June after several surgeries.
Tensions peaked on 25 June, the first anniversary of last year’s deadly anti-tax protests. Amnesty Kenya said 16 people were killed and more than 400 injured nationwide that day, most from gunshot wounds it attributed to police. The state-funded Kenya National Commission on Human Rights put the death toll at eight but confirmed similar casualty figures. Hospitals in Nairobi reported scores of gunshot victims, and more than 60 demonstrators were detained.
Interior Minister Kipchumba Murkomen accused protesters of attempting a coup and defended the security response, drawing criticism from civil-rights groups. Media outlets that broadcast live images of the demonstrations were briefly ordered off air until a court intervened. The Independent Policing Oversight Authority has opened multiple investigations, and rights advocates are pressing President William Ruto’s government to curb excessive force and finance victims’ hospital bills.
Public anger remains high. During Ojwang’s funeral procession on 3 July, mourners torched Mawego Police Station—where he was first held—underscoring the depth of mistrust in law-enforcement institutions. With two high-profile deaths linked to police actions and at least 16 fatalities in the anniversary marches, pressure is mounting on Kenyan authorities to deliver credible prosecutions and enact promised reforms of the security services.
Thousands of youths on Thursday stormed and torched the Mawego Police post in Rachuonyo East, Homa Bay County, while carrying the coffin of the late blogger Albert Ojwang' who is set to be buried today
