Homa Bay Town Member of Parliament (MP) Peter Kaluma has demanded urgent legal action against those implicated in the death of Albert Ojwang, urging for their immediate prosecution.
In a statement released on Wednesday, June 11, 2025, Kaluma emphasised that all individuals who gave orders leading to Ojwang’s arrest and subsequent death must be charged without delay. He set a deadline, insisting that legal proceedings begin no later than Friday, June 13.
The MP’s remarks followed revelations by the Inspector General of Police, who indicated that Deputy Inspector General Eliud Langat had lodged the complaint that led to Ojwang’s arrest. Ojwang was later reported dead while in police custody.
Kaluma acknowledged that filing a complaint with the police is not a crime.
However, he maintained that instructing or sanctioning the killing of a person is a serious offence.
He called for those who issued any such orders in relation to Ojwang’s death to be prosecuted and jailed without delay.
“It is not a crime to complain to the police. But it is a crime to instruct the killing of a human person. It is a crime to kill a human person. Those who instructed the killing and killed Albert Ojwang MUST be arrested, prosecuted, and jailed. This should not go beyond Friday!” Kaluma said.
Albert Ojwang’s demise
Albert Ojwang, a 31-year-old teacher and social media influencer from Voi, was arrested on June 7, 2025, in Kakot, Homa Bay County, by officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) following a complaint by Deputy Inspector General of Police Eliud Lagat.
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Lagat accused Ojwang of posting defamatory content on X that, according to him, had tarnished his reputation.
Ojwang was transferred over 350 km to Nairobi’s Central Police Station, where he was booked on June 7 under OB No. 136/7/6/2025 at 9:35 p.m.
Less than six hours later, at 3:45 a.m. on June 8, he was found unconscious during a routine cell inspection and rushed to Mbagathi Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival.
The police initially claimed that Ojwang died from self-inflicted head injuries caused by repeatedly hitting his head against the cell wall.
However, a postmortem conducted on June 10 at Nairobi Funeral Home led by state pathologist Bernard Midia, alongside Dr Caroline Njoroge and representatives from the Police Reforms Working Group and the Independent Medico-Legal Unit, revealed a different cause of death.
The autopsy revealed severe head injuries due to blunt force trauma, neck compression, and multiple soft tissue injuries across the head, neck, upper limbs, trunk, and lower limbs – findings that strongly indicated assault rather than self-inflicted harm.
The family’s lawyer, Julius Juma, reported visible trauma, including swelling on the head, nose, and ears, as well as bruises on the shoulders and hands, all inconsistent with the police narrative.
Ojwang’s father, Meshack Opiyo, stated that the officers provided no clear explanation for the arrest beyond citing an insult to a senior official, and the family was denied access to the cell where Ojwang died.
