The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) has launched an extensive crackdown following the nationwide protests against the proposed 2024/2025 Finance Bill, which were exploited by organized criminal elements to loot businesses and cause widespread destruction.
This operation has led to several arrests and court appearances, as the agency aims to safeguard the rights of peaceful demonstrators while holding offenders accountable.
In a recent statement, the DCI detailed the measures taken in response to criminal activities that marred the otherwise peaceful protests organized by Kenyan youths. The protests, aimed at rejecting the proposed 2024/2025 Finance Bill, were hijacked by well-coordinated groups posing as demonstrators, leading to the looting of several businesses, including boutiques, electronic shops, and supermarkets.
“Other groups with criminal minds took advantage of the situation and devised schemes to cause harm and economically frustrate fellow Kenyans,” the DCI stated. This criminal behavior not only jeopardized the livelihoods of many business owners but also compromised a critical constitutional right to protest peacefully.
In response, the DCI’s Imaging and Acoustic Unit, part of the National Forensic Laboratory, has been meticulously analyzing CCTV footage to identify individuals involved in the looting and destruction. “Numerous CCTV footages have captured identifiable persons, whose felonious acts isolate them from the hundreds of thousands that stuck to their course,” the statement read.
Among those apprehended, Naftary David Njama Gatuota and Joseph Kuru Waweru, have been arraigned before a Kiambu court.
They face charges of arson and malicious damage to property, including the burning of Kikuyu NG-CDF offices valued at KES 20 million, the destruction of a NG-CDF vehicle worth KES 2.5 million, and damage to the office of the Kikuyu Sub-County Deputy County Commissioner valued at KES 600,000. The offenses occurred on June 25, 2024. Both suspects, who unsuccessfully vied for elective posts during the 2022 elections, denied the charges and were released on a KES 1 million bond with a surety of the same amount or a cash bail of KES 200,000.
In addition, four individuals – William Barasa, Dennis Kamau, Brian Thirikwa Wangechi, and Christopher Nyogoro – were charged with breaking into a building and stealing goods worth over KES 450,000 from various stalls in Nairobi. They appeared before Senior Principal Magistrate Hon. Ben Mark Ekhubi at Milimani law courts and pleaded not guilty.
The DCI also reported that Stephen Mokogi Nyarenchi and Geoffrey Njau Wangui were charged with unlawful entry into parliament precincts by climbing over the fence along Parliament Road on June 29, 2024.
“The DCI calls upon the individuals whose faces appear below to present themselves to the nearest DCI offices for further action,” the statement urged, emphasizing the agency’s commitment to flushing out criminals who exploit legitimate protests for personal gain. The DCI also cautioned the public to refrain from acts of violence and property destruction, warning that the law will take its course “without fear or favor.”
