Court denies DCI custodial orders on Boniface Mwangi in incitement case » Capital News
NAIROBI, Kenya, Jul 26 — The High Court has admitted activist Boniface Mwangi and four associates to Sh20,000 cash bail each to declining DCI’s bid to hold them for twenty-one days.
The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) had applied for custodial orders for the five to complete investigations in incitement case.
Milimani Principal Magistrate Gilbert Shikwe however said the applications failed to list compelling reasons. He slotted a mention on August 26.
The DCI accused the five of false publication, taking part in an unlawful assembly, and creating a disturbance in a manner likely to cause a breach of peace.
Road blockage
The DCI, in its application on Friday, alleged that the five caused breach of peace and inconvenienced other road users along Nairobi’s Koinange Street by blocking the road after placing one white coffin and seven crosses on Thursday.
“The respondent during the blocking of the said road were distributing t-shirts and placards with incitement words,” DCI stated.
“The respondents through various social media platforms had posted allegations that the government was out to kill its citizens which words were deemed and construed that the government was perpetrating extrajudicial killings; posts which incited the members of the public causing a breach of peace,” the agency argued.
Police arrested the five on Thursday while demonstrating in the CBD protesting police brutality on protestors.
The Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) condemned the arrest and called for the release of the activists.
“Free Boniface Mwangi and Hussein Khali,” KHRC said vowing to sustain the clamour for the prosecution of police officers blamed for killing protestors.
Before his arrest, Mwangi had sent out an update informing his followers of an intended meeting point.
“See you at Kimathi Street at 11 am. Let’s escort the families of our heroes to the scene of the crime to lay flowers,” he stated.
“If you see Raila (ODM leader) anywhere, record a video calling him a traitor, let the old man spend the rest of his life knowing he betrayed Kenyans for a few coins,” Mwangi said referring to the nomination of four senior ODM politicians to President William Ruto’s Cabinet.
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