Albert Ojwang laid to rest as IPOA closes file on officer charged with murdering him

Kokwanyo village in Homa Bay turned into a sea of sorrow and fury on Friday as mourners gathered to bury Albert Ojwang, the teacher and blogger whose death in police custody has become a national wound.

His coffin--draped in Kenyan flag and Manchester United flag--gently lowered into the ground under grey skies, was surrounded by songs of lament, clenched fists, and eyes red with grief. But the day was far from quiet.

Just hours before the burial, mourners--mainly angry youths--marched to Mawego Police Station, where Ojwang was last seen alive.

The protest quickly escalated. Stones were hurled. Fires lit. Parts of the station were set ablaze.

There were no police officers in sight. The building stood silent as flames licked its walls—burning with the same rage that has consumed the community since Ojwang’s death.

“No justice, no peace!” they shouted. "Albert must not die in vain!"

Earlier, at the family home, grief was overwhelming. His mother collapsed beside the casket.

His father stared at the grave, silent. Friends, colleagues, and strangers wept openly.

Local clergy led final prayers, pleading with the nation not to forget this pain.

“We have come to bury a son, but also to awaken a country,” one pastor said.

The Governor of Homa Bay, Gladys Wanga, stood beside the grave.
“Albert’s blood cries from the ground,” she said.

“We will not stop until justice is done.”

The crowd murmured in agreement, some lifting placards with his portrait—smiling, still full of life.

The storm that broke in Homa Bay began on June 7, 2025, when Albert Ojwang was arrested in Rodi Kopany during a protest. He was taken to Mawego Police Station, then transferred to Central Police Station in Nairobi. Within 48 hours, he was dead.

The police claimed he collapsed in custody. But a post-mortem revealed blunt-force trauma to the head and neck—a clear indication of torture.

Public anger erupted nationwide. Teachers and students marched. Hashtags trended. Vigils filled town squares. And pressure mounted for justice.

That pressure reached a turning point on June 24, when OCS Samson Kiprotich Talaam, the head of Central Police Station, appeared in Kibera High Court. He was charged with Ojwang’s murder, alongside five others: officers James Mukhwana, Peter Kimani, and civilians John Ngige Gitau, Gin Ammitou Abwao, and Brian Mwaniki Njue.

All six(6) pleaded not guilty. The prosecution opposed bail, warning that they could tamper with evidence—especially since CCTV footage from the station is reportedly missing.

The case has since been confirmed to proceed at Kibera High Court, under the close watch of IPOA and the Director of Public Prosecutions.

At a requiem mass in Nairobi on Wednesday, Albert’s widow, Nevnina, wept as she recalled their last conversation.

“He told me he loved me and would see me soon. Instead, I saw him in a mortuary.”

His father, Meshack Opiyo, could barely speak.

“We gave this country a teacher. It gave us a body,” Mr Opiyo said.

The funeral on Friday marked an end. But not closure. Not yet.

Because even as Albert Ojwang now rests beneath the red soil of Kokwanyo, the fire for justice has only just begun to burn, according to activists who spoke during his burial ceremony.

And this story--his story--is not over.

Meanwhile, the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) has closed investigations against a police officer who has since been charged with murdering Ojwang.

Following the closure of the miscellaneous file against Police Constable James Mukhwana, Milimani Law Courts Senior Principal Magistrate Robinson Ondieki directed the suspect to appear before the High Court Judge Diana Kavedza on July 30, 2025, for further directions.

PC Mukhwana who had the keys to the cell where the brutally murdered teacher was held prior to his death, is charged alongside former OCS Nairobi Central Police Station Samson Talaam and four(4) others with the murder of Ojwang on the night of June 7 and June 8, 2025.

Asking the court to close the miscellaneous file, a prosecuting counsel told the magistrate that Mr Mukhwana has since been charged with murder.

“I've been instructed to close the miscellaneous file seeking the detention of Mr Mukhwana for 21 days pending completion of investigations into the heinous and brutal murder of Albert Ojwang while detained at the Central Police Station,” Mr Ondieki heard.

In a brief ruling, the magistrate marked the file as closed and ordered Mr Mukhwana to continue being detained at the Capitol Hill Police Station.

When the police officer appeared before Justice Kavedza, a senior assistant DPP Jalson Makori applied to have Mr Mukhwana be detained at Capitol Police Station until July 30, 2025, for further interrogation.

Police Constable (PC) Mukhwana had the keys into the cell where Ojwang was detained after being arrested in Homa Bay and transferred to Nairobi.

On June 30, 2025, Justice Lawrence Mugambi ruled that Mr Talaam and Mr Mukhwana lost bid to suspend their murder trial to pave way for a public inquest to establish the cause of the death of Ojwang.

Instead Justice Mugambi transferred the petition by Mr Talaam and PC Mukhwana to be heard and determined by Kibera High Court Judge Diana Kavedza who is presiding over the murder case.

Declining to hear and determine the petition for an inquest to establish the cause of death of Ojwang inside a police cell at the Central Police Station, Justice Mugambi said “there will be conflict of interest.”

The decision follows submissions indicating that the matter is already before the Kibera court, where the two(2) officers have taken plea in connection with the murder of Ojwang.

In a ruling, Justice Mugambi noted that the issues raised in the petition could be adequately addressed within the ongoing proceedings at the Kibera High Court, a court of equal jurisdiction.

In the petition, the interdicted OCS is asking the High Court to stop the murder trial and instead order an inquest into the blogger's death, to establish the exact cause of death.

Through his lawyer Danstan Omari, Mr Talaam contents that the High Court has jurisdiction to hear and grant the prayers sought.

Mr Omari argued that the law requires an inquest be conducted to establish the cause of death of any suspect held in a police cell.

However, the judge disagreed, stating: “The orders in the miscellaneous file are spent, and the court has assumed jurisdiction. The argument is sound. Any objections to continued detention can be made before the Kibera High Court.”

Justice Mugambi directed that the file be transferred to the Kibera Law Courts for further directions on July 30, 2025.

Justice Kavedza will decide on July 30, 2025, whether to free the suspects on bond after receiving a pre-bail report and victims' impact report.