21 Special Services Unit officers grilled over extrajudicial killings after President Ruto's order

Twenty-one officers from the now defunct Special Services Unit of the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) were on Friday grilled by detectives from the Internal Affairs Unit of the National Police Service over alleged involvement in extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances in the country.

This comes just a day after President William Ruto, during his Mashujaa Day speech, ordered speedy investigations into the conduct of the disbanded police unit, accusing them of extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances.

The officers comprising of two chief inspectors, one inspector of police, three officers of the rank of sergeant, 10 corporals and five police constables, were questioned for the better part of the day in addition to recording statements on what they knew on the allegations levelled against them.

Sources privy to the investigations revealed to Citizen TV that the officers were taken to task on how they handled several prominent cases, key among them being whether they took part in the mysterious disappearance of two Indian nationals Zulfiqar Ahmad Khan and Mohamed Zaid Kidwai, and a Kenyan taxi driver Nicodemus Mwania, who are reported to have been abducted near Ole Sereni hotel in Nairobi.

This even as a search operation informed by prior interrogations continued in the Aberdares Forest where officers are reported to have found what could be belongings and bits of remains of the trio.

What was found has been transported to Nairobi where it is expected to undergo forensic analysis to establish whether the remains belong to the three.

As this was happening Acting Police Inspector General Noor Gabow reviewed changes he made on the leadership of the National Police Service. Gabow cancelled the appointment of John Gachomo as the Director of the Internal Affairs Unit, replacing him with Deputy Director at the IAU Esther Ng’ang’a.

Gachomo who until his transfer was the director at the investigations bureau at the DCI also served as the director of the anti-terror police unit (ATPU).

Esther Ng’ang’a who now moves to the helm of the IAU where she deputised Amin Mohamed who is the new DCI, is a commissioner of police and a lawyer.

The investigations could see senior officers at the DCI take to the dock as accused persons facing charges of abuse of office, extrajudicial executions and enforced disappearances.