By Andrew Kariuki
The Supreme Court has dismissed an appeal filed by journalist Justus Ochieng against the Attorney General over claims of illegal arrest, torture and violation of constitutional rights following newspaper reports he published in 2014.
Ochieng, who was working for The Star newspaper at the time, had moved to court claiming that police officers attached to Kisumu Central Police Station unlawfully arrested, detained and assaulted him after he published articles linking a Criminal Investigations Department (CID) officer to alleged robbery and fraudulent activities.
According to court documents, the journalist had published a story titled “Mystery over return of cop’s stolen money” on October 1, 2014, followed by another editorial titled “Arrest robber with CID day job.”
The court heard that shortly after the publications, Ochieng allegedly began receiving threats to his life from known individuals, forcing him to go into hiding before later reporting the threats at Kisumu Central Police Station.
However, when he later returned to the station to inquire about progress on his complaint, he was arrested, detained and allegedly subjected to torture and degrading treatment by police officers.
In the constitutional petition filed before the High Court, Ochieng argued that his arrest violated his rights under Articles 25, 29, 33, 48, 49 and 51 of the Constitution, including freedom of expression, protection from torture and access to justice.
He further claimed that while in custody he sustained physical injuries, which were documented through a medical report and P3 form presented before court.
The Attorney General opposed the petition, maintaining that the journalist’s arrest was lawful and connected to allegations of criminal libel arising from his publications.
State witnesses further claimed that Ochieng became unruly while in custody and denied allegations that police officers assaulted him.
The High Court partially ruled in Ochieng’s favor after finding that he had been subjected to torture while in police custody and awarded him Ksh100,000 in general damages. However, the court upheld the legality of his arrest and found insufficient evidence to prove violations of his freedom of expression and other constitutional rights.
Dissatisfied with the award and findings, Ochieng appealed up to the Supreme Court seeking enhanced damages amounting to Ksh15 million.
However, the apex court dismissed the appeal and upheld the earlier decisions of both the High Court and the Court of Appeal.
