NAIROBI, Kenya — Terrorism charges against activist Boniface Mwangi have been withdrawn by the prosecution following his arrest on Saturday. Mr. Mwangi, who appeared at the Kahawa Law Courts on Monday morning, is now facing two counts of possessing ammunition without a valid firearm certificate.
A charge sheet reviewed by Vivid Voice News indicates that the activist is accused of being in possession of three teargas canisters and one round of blank ammunition.
The first count reads: “On July 19, 2025, at Mageuzi Hub in Nairobi County within the Republic of Kenya, you were found in possession of noxious substances, to wit, three teargas cannisters without lawful authority.”
The second charge states: “On July 19, 2025, at Mageuzi Hub in Nairobi County within the Republic of Kenya, you were found in possession of one round of 7.62×21mm blank ammunition without lawful authority.”
Following his arraignment, Magistrate Gedion Kiage ordered Mr. Mwangi’s release on a personal bond of KSh 1 million. The case is scheduled for mention on August 19.
Mr. Mwangi was initially arrested on Saturday, July 19, when detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) raided his home in Lukenya, taking him in for questioning in connection with “facilitating terrorism.”
The DCI, in confirming the arrest the following day, claimed to have recovered a 7.62mm blank round and two unused teargas canisters from his premises – a different count from the three teargas canisters specified in the current charge sheet.
Other items listed in the DCI reports included nine assorted external hard drives, two laptops, company seals for Brave Media Ltd and Courage Ltd, a company stamp, six chequebooks, and copies of stamp duty documents.
However, speaking outside Pangani Police Station on Sunday, Mwangi’s family and lawyers, led by Njanja Maina, refuted the DCI’s assertion regarding his possession of terrorism-related materials.
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“We have seen a statement by the DCI today that there are items that were picked from his office. We can confirm and state with no uncertainty that those are things which he did not have in his possession. So we do not know why they are coming up with terrorism charges,” Maina stated.
Furthermore, his legal team accused the DCI of exceeding the scope of an ex parte order, which had been issued specifically for the search of his offices, by also searching his private residence.
“Boniface Mwangi was picked from his residence at around 4pm and brought to his office, where officers had obtained an ex parte order. The search warrant was exclusive to his office, but we can also confirm that they searched his home. We don’t know why this was done, especially since there was no arrest warrant accompanying the order,” Maina relayed.
