Kitengela Family Says Officer Who Shot Son Was Well Known To Him, A Reason They Took Body Home To Protect Him From Police

A grieving Kitengela family has revealed that the police officer who shot their 21-year-old son dead during Monday’s Saba Saba demonstrations was personally known to the victim, prompting them to take the extraordinary step of keeping the body at their home overnight to protect it from potential police interference.

Ann Nyawira, mother of Brian Kimutai who was gunned down on July 7, 2025, told journalists outside the Kitengela Sub-County Morgue that a GK Prison Officer who knew her son “very well and on a personal level” was responsible for the killing. She disclosed that the officer allegedly harbored a grudge against Brian over a motorbike dispute.

“His friends know very well where the grudge came from,” Nyawira said, adding that the shooting occurred just meters from their home along Kitengela prison road.

The mother painted a disturbing picture of her son’s final moments, recounting witness accounts of how the officer and his colleagues marched toward Brian, who immediately knelt and raised his hands in surrender.

Despite this clear gesture of submission, the officer allegedly “sprayed him with bullets.”

Nyawira emphasized that her son was not participating in the protests that day. “I was with Brian in the morning, and he told me that he was not ready to go out for the protest; he was neither a looter nor a protester,” she said.

The family’s decision to transport Brian’s body from the hospital to their home, where they spent the night with it, underscores their deep mistrust of law enforcement. “We were worried the police could interfere with the body, that’s why we had no choice but to take it to our house,” Nyawira explained.

This unprecedented move by the family highlights the breakdown of trust between citizens and police, particularly in cases involving alleged extrajudicial killings. The fact that they felt compelled to guard their deceased son’s body speaks to their fear that evidence might be tampered with or that the body might disappear entirely.

Human rights activists have now called for an immediate investigation into the incident, demanding that the prison officer be arrested and interdicted without delay. The case adds to growing concerns about police brutality during public demonstrations and the apparent use of excessive force against unarmed civilians.

The killing of Brian Kimutai represents not just another statistic in Kenya’s troubled history of police violence, but a deeply personal tragedy involving individuals who knew each other – raising questions about whether personal vendettas are being settled under the cover of crowd control operations.

As the family seeks justice for their son, their decision to literally protect his body from those meant to protect and serve stands as a powerful indictment of the current state of law enforcement in Kenya.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​