The police governing body Independent Policing and Oversight Authority (IPOA) has launched investigations into the incident where four people were shot dead by officers attached to the General Service Unit (GSU).

The authority on Friday, June 3, 2022, led by its chairperson Ms Anne Makori stated in a report that IPOA is informed that its officers from the General Service Unit had allegedly sprayed bullets on a group of demonstrators in Masimba Kajiado County Killing Four people.

“IPOA learnt of the deaths of four people and injury to others when the police allegedly opened fire on demonstrating members of the public in Kajiado County,” the statement reads in part.

The demonstrations turned chaotic when locals in the area blocked roads within Kajiado County for hours cutting off the transport corridor as motorists and transporters watched helplessly forcing the police to intervene. The residents were expressing their hunger following an incident where a teacher in the area was killed by an elephant demanding to be addressed by officers from the Kenya Wildlife Services (KWS).

Three of the victims were reported dead on the spot while one succumbed while receiving treatment at Makindu Sub-County Hospital. According to the hospital management led by Dr David Kasanga, three people, are still admitted to the facility in a critical condition.

Among the admitted patients is a Kenya Defense Forces (KDF) soldier attached to Kahawa Barracks in Nairobi.  IPOA Chairperson Anne Makori has however stated that the Authority has dispatched a team to the area as part of the efforts to gather information on what transpired.