Salasya rages over Albert Ojwang’s death in police custody
The death of Albert Ojwang in police custody has ignited a wave of public outrage and drawn sharp condemnation from lawmakers, including Mumias East MP Peter Salasya, who on Monday, June 9, 2025, decried what he described as a deepening crisis of police accountability.
Salasya issued a blistering statement condemning the death of 22-year-old Ojwang while in police custody, describing the incident as a slap in the face to Kenya’s youth and warning that the country is treading on a dangerous path.
“#AlbertOjwang dying in custody is a slap in the face to Kenya’s youth! We are on a VERY dangerous path,” Salasya posted on the social media platform X, breaking his silence on the incident that has shaken public confidence in law enforcement.
Albert Ojwang, a resident of Kakot village in Homa Bay County, was arrested on Saturday, June 7, 2025, by officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI).
According to family members, Ojwang was taken from his home in Kabondo-Kasipul constituency in the presence of his father, Meshack Ojwang, and briefly detained at Mawego Police Station before being transferred to Nairobi’s Central Police Station.
By Sunday morning, Ojwang was dead.
Police version faces scrutiny
In an initial statement, the National Police Service (NPS) claimed Ojwang died from fatal head injuries sustained after striking his head against the wall of his cell.
Police claimed that its officers rushed Ojwang to Mbagathi Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival.
The explanation was met with widespread scepticism.
Civil society groups, human rights defenders, and members of the public questioned the plausibility of the police narrative, pointing to a broader pattern of custodial deaths and alleged police brutality.
Ojwang’s father, who had travelled overnight to Nairobi to visit his son, was informed of his death upon arriving at the station.
“They wouldn’t let me see where my son died,” he said in a tearful statement outside the Central Police Station, where he had been denied access to the holding cells.
“I only want to know what really happened.”
Officers interdicted, investigation underway
In response to mounting public pressure, the Inspector General of Police, Douglas Kanja, announced the interdiction of several officers connected to the case.
The list includes the Officer Commanding Station (OCS) of the Central Police Station, the duty officer on the night of June 7, 2025, the officer supervising the cells, and others present during the incident.
“The National Police Service wishes to inform the public that, following the tragic death of Albert Ojwang while in police custody, and to ensure a thorough, impartial, and expeditious investigation by the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA), the mentioned officers have been interdicted with immediate effect,” NPS spokesperson Muchiri Nyaga said in a statement.
The move marks a rare instance of swift administrative action in a case involving police conduct, though critics say it remains to be seen whether the response will yield substantive accountability.
Mounting calls for justice
Ojwang’s death has touched a nerve in a country where reports of excessive force, illegal detentions, and deaths in custody continue to emerge.
Activists have called for an independent postmortem and unrestricted access to police records and surveillance footage from the station.
Albert’s body is currently being held at the Nairobi Funeral Home, formerly City Mortuary.
Family members say they will not proceed with burial plans until an independent autopsy is conducted.
As the nation awaits further information, Ojwang’s death has become a rallying point for critics of the police service – one more name in a growing list of young Kenyans who never returned from custody.
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Martin Oduor
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