Constable Kipkoech Tarus(top) and Chief Inspector Samson Kipchirchir Kipruto who shot Makadara Principal Magistrate Monica Kivuti in court.
When referee Anthony Taylor blew his whistle after 97 minutes of intense football at Old Trafford, the third biggest stadium in England by capacity, home team Manchester United and Arsenal settled for a draw in an English Premier League fixture that always attracts millions of viewers worldwide.
Back home at the Gigiri Police Station canteen, Corporal Philip Kae, Limo Kipkosgey and Eric Munga were among the millions of viewers who watched the football spectacle on TV.
Mr Kipkosgey, who is seconded to Parliament Buildings in Nairobi as a protection officer, was seated alone, sipping a drink, his silence indicating deep thought and reflection.
When the referee blew the final whistle, some patrons at the canteen started analysing the match results while others made merry. Hell broke loose as Mr Kipkosgey drew his Ceska pistol and began shooting indiscriminately.
Witnesses said that patrons scampered for safety as the officer became even more wild and went on a shooting spree.
In less than two minutes, the police canteen which had been filled with fun had become a murder scene.
Mr Kae, who is attached to the Judiciary, took a bullet to his lower abdomen and is receiving treatment at Aga Khan University Hospital.
Mr Munga, who was stationed at Runda Police Station, was not as lucky. A bullet hit the left side of his chest ended his life. Doctors at Aga Khan Hospital pronounced him dead on arrival.
A police report states that Mr Kipkosgey was “totally drunk” when he shot his colleagues.
The Gigiri incident is one of many that have silently plagued the National Police Service for over a decade, as questions continue to mount on why officers are armed with service-issue weapons when off duty and drinking in bars.
National Police Service Standing Orders require that all officers must return their guns to the armoury when not on duty.
Shooting incidences in the force have raised questions on the mental health of police officers serving in crucial areas, including guarding VIPS.
General Service Unit officer Ezekiel Tarus at the Milimani Law Court on March 5, 2025. He is accused of shooting and killing CBK chief security officer Raphael Wambua.
Police Spokesperson Michael Muchiri maintained that the four shooting incidents in recent weeks are isolated, and do not show a consistent trend in breaches of firearm guidelines within the service.
“These are just sad and isolated cases,” he said when contacted.
He said that there are clear guidelines that police officers follow, and which are enforced by their bosses.
The numbers, however, tell a different tale.
In 2015 nine officers were killed by their colleagues, and in 2017, five more lost their lives in similar fashion.
In 2017, then Police Spokesman George Kinoti said a task force headed by then Assistant Inspector-General Aggrey Adoli was implementing recommendations of a report on the shootings.
That report identified depression, high-handedness by some commanders and crimes of passion as the leading triggers in cases of friendly fire, some of which had claimed the lives of officers.
Less than two weeks before the Gigiri tragedy, police officers had confronted their General Service Unit (GSU) colleague who was attached to the security detail of South Sudan President Salva Kiir, for smoking marijuana.
The GSU officer was smoking while sitting outside President Kiir’s Nairobi residence along Gigiri Road when the police approached him.
The GSU officer tried to flee, and when he saw the police chasing him, he shot at them. One officer was shot in his right hip.
In another case on March 5, a Nairobi court ordered the detention of Constable Kipkoech Tarus for seven days for the police to complete investigating a shooting incident.
Chief Inspector Samson Kipchirchir Kipruto who fatally shot Makadara Principal Magistrate Monica Kivuti (inset).
Mr Tarus is accused of shooting his colleague dead and a friend, Raphael Kimuli Wambua, after a night out. Mr Wambua was attached to the Central Bank of Kenya.
Mr Tarus, who serves in the VIP protection unit for Safaricom Chief Executive Officer Peter Ndegwa, allegedly shot Mr Wambua on February 21 while he was walking home with his brother, Police Constable Erick Ngolania.
A report on the incident stated that the two officers had an argument as they were leaving a bar in Ruaraka. Mr Tarus is said to have turned his anger on Mr Wambua following a disagreement. After the shooting, Mr Tarus is said to have attempted to flee but members of the public subjected him to mob justice. He was rescued from the mob by police officers in patrol.
Last week, the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), in an application in court, sought to hold the officer for 14 days and also conduct a ballistic examination on a firearm. The investigators said that the suspect would undergo a psychiatric assessment.
Milimani Chief Magistrate Lucas Onyina granted the DCI seven days to detain the suspect. He will remain in custody at Ruaraka Police Station until the case is mentioned on March 11.
Last year, a senior police officer was shot and killed by his colleagues after attacking a magistrate at Makadara Law Courts.
Chief Inspector Samson Kipchirchir Kipruto, who was based in Londiani, is said to have been angered by Makadara Principal Magistrate Monica Kivuti’s decision to cancel his wife’s bail.
Ms Kivuti succumbed to her injuries while receiving treatment in hospital.
