Court Orders ODPP to Arrest Former Police Officer Implicated in Baby Pendo Case

The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Renson Ingonga has been given 30 days to arrest and present before the court Mohammed Baa, a former police officer who is among the 12 police officers accused of the murder of Baby Samantha Pendo during the 2017 demonstrations in Kisumu.

Appearing before Lady Justice Margaret Muigai at the Milimani High Court, the court directed the prosecution team to track down the officer whose absence from the court has dragged the case for more than two months.

This is despite the case being delayed on the corridors of justice for more than ten years since the tragic event that led to her death in the Nyalenda slums of Kisumu County. 

Further, the court granted the DPP 30 days to review charges in the Baby Pendo murder case amid challenges in tracing the police officer who is suspected to have fled to Somalia. 

Consequently, the court directed the Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja or any other assigned senior police officer to update the court on efforts undertaken to trace Baa.

To ensure that the case proceeds in the event Baa is not found, the court also directed the prosecution to pursue amendments to the charges and to consider the withdrawal of charges against him. 

Baa and 11 of his colleagues Titus Yoma, Titus Mutune, John Chengo, Benjamin Koima, Benjamin Lorema, Volker Edambo, Cyprine Robe, Josphat Sensira, Mohammed Ali Guyo, and James Rono are set to face charges concerning the death of baby Pendo which occurred during the violence after the 2017 general elections.

This was after the officers were reported to have stormed the house where Pendo was with her parents, causing serious head injuries to her after hitting her with a club. 

The suspects are expected to face the charges instituted under the International Crimes Act 2008, considering the role played by each of them based on the international law principle of superior responsibility.

Willis Otieno, Baby Pendo’s family lawyer has in the past blamed the delay in the conclusion of the case on the ODPP, with the case having taken more than six years.

According to Otieno, the delays in the case were part of a broader scheme to deny the family of Baby Pendo Justice. 

”The delay tactics by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) in handling cases of crimes against humanity such as those involving Baby Pendo and other victims of state violence are not just procedural issues; they are deliberate strategies to frustrate justice and shield perpetrators,” Otieno stated.

”Delays in prosecution allow evidence to fade, witnesses to become unavailable, and public interest to wane. This is a well-known script: drag the process for years, shuffle prosecutors, feign procedural concerns, and hope the victims and their advocates eventually lose steam. Meanwhile, the perpetrators remain shielded by the state, their careers intact, their power.”