NAIROBI, Kenya — Former Police Spokesperson Charles Owino has introduced a controversial new claim regarding the shooting of Boniface Mwangi Kariuki, the hawker declared brain dead after sustaining a gunshot wound during anti-police brutality protests in Nairobi. Owino now alleges that Kariuki insulted the officer who fired the shot.
Speaking to Citizen TV on Monday 30, June 2025, Owino asserted that while he condemns the shooting, a close examination of video footage showing Kariuki’s confrontation with two police officers reveals an “irksome slur” directed at the officer, which he suggests may have provoked the response.
“It was a very simple exchange. If you listen to that clip closely you will hear that boy abusing the policeman. But you are an officer you must have restraint, and shoot him with a rubber bullet. You can see what it has caused the image of the police so far,” Owino stated.
He further argued that the young age of the officer who discharged the firearm, identified as Klinzy Barasa, might have contributed to an inability to manage anger. “Such a young boy… If you abuse him… you know what may happen,” Owino remarked.
The former spokesperson clarified that police officers are trained to use firearms in “certain circumstances” that may necessitate swift individual action, without immediate consultation. “Police are well trained on justifiable circumstances on use of firearms, and they are aware that every officer will always find themselves in situations where they have to act on their own without the opportunity to refer to their books or superiors.”
Owino also drew a parallel between this type of situation and the recent “shoot-on-sight” orders issued by Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen. He commented on the context of the directive, stating, “The minister can only give instructions to the IG in writing and on matters of policy. That is what the constitution provides. But it reaches a point where a minister is seen to be incapacitated by the actions of people.”
On Thursday, June 26, Minister Murkomen had instructed police to shoot anyone attempting to approach a police station, following a media briefing where he described recent Gen Z protests as an attempted coup.
Also Read: Family of shot hawker Boniface Kariuki scammed of Ksh 200,000 amid soaring Ksh 1M hospital bill
Meanwhile, Boniface Kariuki was tragically declared brain dead on Sunday. His family spokesperson, Emily Wanjira, confirmed that medics at Kenyatta National Hospital had verified that while Kariuki’s organs remain functional, his brain activity has ceased.
“Mwangi is confirmed brain dead. We know what it means. We are just waiting for the doctor to tell us he is no more,” she painfully conveyed. The family also noted that further bullet fragments remain lodged in his brain.
The two police officers implicated in the June 17 incident on Mondlane Street in Nairobi’s Central Business District, Klinzy Baraza Masinde and Duncan Kiprono, have since been interdicted.
They are currently being held in custody as the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) continues its investigation into the shooting.
