Policeman arrested after shooting man at close range in Umoja

A police officer was Sunday November 13 arrested after he shot and killed an unidentified man after an argument in Umoja area, Nairobi.

The motive of the shooting is yet to be established.

Witnesses however told police they saw two people argue at about 3:00 AM before one of them reached out for his gun and shot the other one in the head killing him on the spot.

Police were informed and rushed to the scene and found constable Jason Nyamolo there armed with a Glock pistol loaded with 14 bullets.

Nyamolo was arrested and placed in custody pending further action. It is not clear what he told his colleagues but officials said the matter is under probe.

The body with a single gunshot wound on the head was transferred to city mortuary awaiting postmortem and identification.

Police say they are yet to establish the motive of the shooting.

Cases of police being involved in crime have been on an increasing and worrying trend.

Police have internal mechanisms to deal with such reported cases including using their own to investigate them, involving the Internal Affairs Unit and Independent Policing Oversight Authority.

Dozens of police officers are facing various cases in courts.

Police however are adamant that the cases as isolated and do not reflect the conduct of the entire force. The Inspector General (IG) of Police, Japhet Koome, argued 98 percent of police officers are good.

He said they are dealing with the two percent who have gone rogue and they have the capacity to address the issue.

Koome called upon police oversight institutions to take up their rightful roles and assist the National Police Service in dealing with the rogue officers.

The IG assured the public of their safety and security, and also affirmed that all police officers were well versed with the law on the justifiable instances on when they are supposed to use a firearm.

Koome assured police officers of his support so long as they acted within the law.