The Independent Policing Oversight Authority has confirmed that it has received information about a popular video on social media depicting a gunshot event near the Thika Super Highway in Pangani.
I poa chairperson Anne Makori said in a statement that a Rapid Response team was dispatched to the scene in accordance with the terms of IPOA Act Section 7(a)(x), which requires the authority to investigate deaths and injuries caused by police actions.
“The authority took up the complaint based on preliminary information, including but not limited to video clips displaying a crime scene that appears to show a shooting and the presence of police officers,” Anne explained.
She went on to say that if a flaw is discovered after the investigations, the authority will not hesitate to make recommendations, including but not limited to prosecution.
The I poa statement comes just hours after the National Police Department defended its officers following the killing of two suspected robbers.
Pangani police officers responded quickly to the robbery with violence incident, according to the service, and managed to corner two suspects escaping on a motorcycle following a chase along Thika Super Highway.
This follows outrage on social media from Kenyans who reported that the suspects were shot at close range by police after surrendering.
The perpetrators, who had robbed a woman at gunpoint in the Pangani neighborhood, rejected demands to surrender and instead fired at police officers, who swiftly engaged them in self-defense, according to the police statement.
The two suspects were fatally injured as a result, according to the NPS.
