NAIROBI: Man Dies While In Police Custody 4 Hours After Being Arrested
A family has been left in mourning after a member died in police custody just hours after being arrested, sparking new concerns about what happens behind cell doors in Kenya.
The 23-year-old boda boda rider was detained and taken to Nairobi’s Kawangware police station at 7 p.m. on Thursday, December 11, 2025.
Four hours later, at 10:50 p.m., his body was booked into City Mortuary.
According to the authorities, he committed suicide with a T-shirt while alone in his cell.
However, the family rejects this statement, claiming that the body was still dressed as when he was apprehended.
According to sources, the T-shirt worn in the purported suicide has yet to be produced.
Another death in police custody:
— Citizen TV Kenya (@citizentvkenya) December 13, 2025
Suspect found dead in police cells at Kawangware police post. Family claims Matoke was strangled while in custody
Nandwa: Police say he took his own life using his shirt
Khalid: Too many deaths being reported in police custody#CitizenWeekend pic.twitter.com/sR0NGMyrhD
Family members believe that a mark on the victim’s neck indicates that he was strangled with a wire.
The young man is leaving behind a two-year-old daughter.
This unfortunate tragedy occurred just six months after the murder of Albert Ojwang, a Kenyan blogger and teacher, who died in police custody in June 2025.
On June 7, 2025, Ojwang was detained in Homa Bay for suspected disparaging posts on X and taken to Nairobi Central Police Station.
He was discovered comatose in a jail the next day and proclaimed dead at Mbagathi Hospital.
Police initially claimed he hit his head against a wall, but an autopsy revealed severe head injuries, neck compression, and assault wounds.
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The Inspector General of Police, Douglas Kanja, later apologized and retracted the initial account, leading to the arrest of multiple officers.
A report released by the Independent Medico-Legal Unit (IMLU) on December 10, 2025, revealed that 97 people were killed by police this year alone.
Of these, 18 died in custody, 72 cases involved torture or ill-treatment, 49 were protest-related injuries, and five were enforced disappearances.
The Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) has launched investigations into both cases, but families continue to demand answers and justice.
NAIROBI: Man Dies While In Police Custody 4 Hours After Being Arrested
