A key suspect in the fatal shooting of Rex Masai during anti-government protests, police officer Isaiah Muraguri, appeared in court alongside former Nairobi Police Commander Adamson Bungei, now the Director of Police Operations.
The inquest into Masai’s death, which resumed after its initial session in December, entered its second day with new CCTV footage presented as evidence. The videos allegedly show plainclothes officers firing at protesters and using tear gas near City Hall and Hilton Hotel.
Muraguri struggled to identify individuals in the footage, insisting they "appeared to be criminals" despite wielding police-grade weapons. He denied being in the video but admitted to being near KICC on the day of the shooting, though he wasn’t in uniform.
His previous court statement, however, detailed his attire as a black cap, black coat, white T-shirt, and khaki pants.
Mobile phone data from a telecommunications provider placed Muraguri around the crime scene at multiple locations, including City Hall, KICC, and Hotel 680. However, he denied using the phone that day, claiming he had stopped using that number.
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Bungei also distanced himself from the incident, asserting that no officer fired shots. He suggested that private gun owners could have been responsible for the shooting.
When asked who authorized the officers in the footage to fire at protesters, he claimed the situation had escalated beyond control, requiring a multi-agency response.
