Activist Boniface Mwangi has sharply criticised blogger Ndiangui Kinyagia for misleading the nation by going into hiding, even as the country rallied behind what many feared was an enforced disappearance.
In a strongly worded statement issued Thursday, July 3, 2025, Mwangi accused Kinyagia and his family of fuelling a nationwide panic and misleading the Law Society of Kenya (LSK), which went to court demanding his release in a habeas corpus petition.
“What Ndiangui Kinyagia has done is wrong and criminal,” Mwangi wrote. “An entire country was fighting for his release, and praying for his safety, thinking he was abducted. But all this time, he was in hiding! Shame on him and his family for misleading an entire nation.”
‘Shameful and inexcusable’
The firebrand activist didn’t spare Kinyagia’s relatives either, accusing them of knowing he was safe but still pushing the narrative that he had been abducted.
The family of Ndiangui Kinyagia misled the Law Society of Kenya and had them file a habeas corpus, despite knowing he was safe and in hiding. This behaviour is shameful and inexcusable,” he added.
Kinyagia went missing on Saturday, June 21, 2025, following a raid on his home reportedly carried out by individuals believed to be officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI). Eyewitnesses claimed that six to ten men driving Subaru vehicles forcibly broke into the house and seized multiple items, including laptops, passports, and electronic devices.
His disappearance prompted public outrage, online campaigns, and legal action led by LSK, all demanding that he be produced in court “dead or alive.”
Why he went into hiding
On July 3, Kinyagia resurfaced and presented himself in public for the first time since his disappearance. His lawyer, Wahome Thuku, said Kinyagia had gone into hiding out of fear for his life.
“Ndiangui contacted a family member on Tuesday evening from an undisclosed location,” Thuku said in a statement. “He indicated that he had hidden temporarily for fear of his life upon learning that DCI officers were looking for him over unknown criminal allegations.”
Thuku insisted Kinyagia had not committed any crime and was willing to cooperate with authorities once guarantees of his safety were in place.
The revelation has triggered debate across Kenya, with opinions split on whether Kinyagia’s actions were self-preservation or reckless misdirection.
