Nairobi — The Independent Medico-Legal Unit (IMLU) has raised alarm over increased criminal activities involving police officers.
The unit’s Executive Director Peter Kiama on Thursday said that in the last few months several police officers have been involved in armed robbery, extra-judicial killings, and extortion contrary to their basic duty of preventing, detecting and investigating crime.
Kiama called upon the Inspector General of Police Hillary Mutyambai to undertake a radical transformation of the police service, in order to curb the criminal networks within the system.
He said the systemic issues range from recruitment, training and command responsibility within the National Police Service.
“It is the reason that action must be taken on the responsible commanders for abdicating their duties for ensuring that they are able to identify and take action against rogue officers,” he said.
Kiama cited a recent incident where some police officers attached at Langata police station were last week arrested on allegations of robbery with violence, and the alleged defilement of a 16-year-old girl by an officer attached at Mea police station in Meru.
In another case at Butula police station in Busia, a police officer was arrested for allegedly dumping the Occurrence Book (OB), into a pit latrine to beat justice.
IMLU’s recent report documented between January to December 2021, on the state of the nation, recorded 210 cases of extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, torture, cruel, inhuman, degrading treatment and punishment.
” Out of these cases 182 (86.6) were violations attributed to police officers,” stated Kiama.