Amnesty International-Kenya head Irungu Houghton has argued that crime buster officer Rashid Ahmed’s motion to suspend his prosecution is premature.
Irungu told media at the Milimani law courts following Ahmed’s news conference that the officer should wait for his court arraignment on December 8.
“Legal counsel need not be concerned; they will get their day in court on December 8th.” He stated, “A court of law, not a court of public opinion.”
Irungu was responding to a press conference held by lawyer Danstan Omari and the Eastleigh business community following the filing of Ahmed’s complaint.
“Community and intelligence-based policing is what reduces crime, not delegating criminal justice authority to a single officer or unit,” he stated.
He further stated that the officer’s shooting of Jamal Mohammed and Mohammed Dahir in 2017 is a matter of national interest, not local concern.
“However, summary executions by police officers or members of the public contradict Article 26 of the Constitution, which safeguards the right to life, and Article 50 of the Constitution, which guarantees our rights to a fair trial,” he stated.
He went on to say that there is a lengthy history of suspect profiling, intimidation, and murder, particularly among Somali Nationals.
He also encouraged the government and the National Police Service to address the city’s worries about violent crime, but only within the bounds of the law.
