Embu family pleads for justice for kin killed by police car

A family in Embu has been left distraught after the death of a businessman who was hit by a police vehicle earlier this week, with witnesses saying the vehicle was being driven recklessly at the time.

Witnesses say Daniel Muriithi was onboard a motorcycle on his way home from Embu town when the police land cruiser hit him before fleeing the scene.

“It was on Tuesday evening when Daniel Muriithi Njiru was on his way from Embu town heading home towards Kianjokoma. By bad luck, he clashed with the land cruiser travelling from Manyatta towards Embu,” an eyewitness, Moses Nyaga said.

“We were told he was knocked down by a police vehicle, and those involved fled the scene. Later, they came to the hospital in a different car. When they found out he had died, they went and took the motorbike to the station,” Muriithi’s wife Wincate Mukami told reporters.

Remembering Muriithi fondly as a staunch family man, Mukami said his demise had left a huge vacuum in the family.

The two had two daughters together.

Muriithi has also been described by some of his kin as a leader within his community.

“He was a leader. But now his life has been ended abruptly through careless driving by a police officer. We are asking for justice for him. We are asking for justice for him and his family.”

Muriithi’s kin have taken issue with the slow action by the authorities to bring the driver of the land cruiser to book.

They say despite repeated efforts to get more information from the police, nothing substantive has ben forthcoming days later.

The death opens a painful wound in the minds of Embu residents, who a year ago stood in solidarity against rogue police officers who were linked to the death of two brothers; Benson Njiru Ndwiga and Emmanuel Mutura Ndwiga.

Famously dubbed the Kianjokoma brothers, the two were arrested on August 1, 2021 by police officers attached to Manyatta Police Station, for defying the 10 pm to 4 am curfew. Following their arrest, the next day, their family searched several police stations in Embu; however, their efforts were in vain.

Police later notified them that Benson and Emmanuel jumped from a moving police car and died on the same day. They found the bodies at Embu Level 5 Hospital morgue.

Missing Voices strongly condemns the killing of Daniel Muriithi, unintended or not. The organization, as it has done severally before, pledges to stay focused on this case until his family finds justice.

We urge the police authorities in Embu to move with speed to bring Muriithi’s killer to book and prosecute the case to completion.