Protests have broken out in Kenya following the death of blogger and social media influencer Albert Ojwang while in police custody. An official autopsy has confirmed that he was strangled and sustained multiple injuries consistent with assault, contradicting police claims of self-inflicted harm.
Ojwang was arrested on Friday in Homa Bay County, western Kenya, after posting a critical message on X (formerly Twitter) about Deputy Police Chief Eliud Lagat. Officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) reportedly picked him up and transported him over 400 kilometres to the Central Police Station in Nairobi. He died in a police cell on Saturday under unclear circumstances.
Police said in a statement that Ojwang had been detained for “false publication” and that he suffered head injuries after allegedly banging his head against a cell wall. They claimed he was rushed to Mbagathi Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival.
However, findings from a post-mortem conducted on Tuesday by government pathologist Dr Bernard Midia contradicted the police account. Dr Midia said Ojwang died from neck compression and blunt force trauma. He noted multiple external injuries on the scalp, face, limbs, and torso – injuries he said could not have been self-inflicted.
When we examined the pattern of injuries, including trauma to the head, the distribution did not match injuries from hitting a wall. They were spaced and suggest a struggle, Dr Midia told journalists during a press briefing.
Ojwang’s family, lawyer, and fellow activists have all disputed the police narrative. Rights groups and the public have expressed outrage. Amnesty International Kenya called for a thorough, independent investigation and demanded that the findings be made public.
The Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) has launched an inquiry into the incident. Inspector-General of Police Douglas Kanja confirmed that officers on duty at the time of Ojwang’s death had been suspended pending the outcome of the investigation.
Opposition leader Raila Odinga also weighed in, calling for full accountability and swift action from the police headquarters. He demanded a credible and transparent investigation into what he described as a deeply troubling death in custody.
The incident has fuelled growing public anger over police brutality and rising state repression in Kenya. It comes nearly a year after the deadly June 2024 anti-tax protests, during which human rights groups accused security forces of killing at least 60 people and abducting dozens more. Although the government later scrapped the proposed tax hikes, economic hardship and frustration with police abuses persist.
Online, outrage continues to mount. Journalist Lynn Ngugi wrote on X:
Finally, fools can stop referring to Albert’s death as “mysterious, suicide etc etc” Albert Ojwang was murdered. A truth we all knew but cowards refused to call it for what it is!! Now, we will fight for justice and leave no stone unturned.
Demonstrations continued in Nairobi on Monday and Tuesday as civil society groups, students, and ordinary citizens took to the streets demanding justice for Ojwang and broader police reforms.
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