A police constable accused of shooting 29-year-old protester Rex Masai during the June 2024 anti-Finance Bill demonstrations has denied involvement, citing mistaken identity and contradicting prior testimony.
Appearing before the Milimani Law Courts on Wednesday, July 17, 2025, Constable Isaiah Murangiri testified that he was not at the scene of the shooting on June 18, 2024, and dismissed images presented by the prosecution linking him to the incident.
“I’m not the one. According to me, the pictures bear no resemblance,” Murangiri told the court, in reference to photographs allegedly placing him near Uhuru Highway during the fatal protest.
“I Never Left KICC”
Murangiri claimed he had been assigned to guard the main entrance of the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) and that protesters did not reach his area of deployment. He said he did not discharge any tear gas canisters or firearms that day.
“Firearms and crowd-control equipment should only be used when protecting yourself, protecting someone else, or responding to an active threat,” he said during the inquest led by Magistrate Zainab Onsarigo.
However, Murangiri’s new testimony starkly contradicted a previous statement he gave, in which he claimed to have been off duty at home caring for a sick child on the same day—an inconsistency flagged by the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA).
IPOA Flags Contradiction, Presents Forensic Evidence
Paul Njihia, the assistant director of forensic investigations at IPOA, also appeared before the court and gave a detailed account of evidence collected at the scene.
He told the court that on June 22, he visited Mama Ngina Street, near International Life House, and observed dried blood—presumed to belong to Rex Masai—along with a deformed bullet lodged in a building window.
“There was a bullet hole in a nearby building, which clearly indicated use of live ammunition,” Njihia told the court, adding that the bullet had been handed over to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations for ballistic analysis.
IPOA has insisted that proper forensic documentation and ballistic testing will be key in determining responsibility for Masai’s death, which ignited public outrage and intensified scrutiny on police conduct during the nationwide protests.
Ongoing Inquest
The court heard that IPOA continues to cross-reference all collected evidence with witness statements, deployment logs, and officer assignments to piece together a timeline of events.
The hearing is scheduled to resume on July 17, with further testimonies expected from both police officials and civilian witnesses.
The inquest into the killing of Rex Masai is being closely watched by civil society groups, legal experts, and human rights watchdogs. Masai has become a symbol of police brutality for Kenya’s youth, especially Gen Z demonstrators who continue to demand justice and accountability.
