What began as an ordinary Saturday evening helping her mother sell fish turned into an unspeakable tragedy for the Adhiambo family when 21-year-old Sheryl Adhiambo was struck in the eye by a stray bullet and died instantly inside her mother’s fish kiosk in Huruma Ngei I, Nairobi County.
The first-year Kenya Medical Training College (KMTC) student, who had just completed her examinations and was home to assist her mother, Caroline Akinyi, at their small business, became the latest victim in what human rights activists are calling a troubling pattern of police use of lethal force.
According to the National Police Service, the tragic chain of events began earlier that day when a member of the public reported at Huruma Police Station that five young men had attacked him, robbed him of a silver chain and Sh1,800 in cash.
Police arrested two suspects in the morning and apprehended two more around 7:30 PM.
The situation escalated during the second arrest when one of the suspects raised an alarm and incited other youths nearby, who responded by throwing stones and other projectiles at the police.
Officers reportedly fired warning shots into the air to disperse the crowd, one of those bullets struck Sheryl as she stood in her mother’s kiosk.
Caroline Akinyi received a phone call while visiting her younger child at school, informing her that her daughter was dead.
When journalists approached the grieving mother, she could barely speak before breaking down in tears.
Sheryl’s body now lies at the City Mortuary, awaiting post-mortem examination.
She was scheduled to complete her final exams on Monday, a day she will never see.
The shooting plunged Huruma into chaos that lasted through Saturday night into Sunday afternoon.
Youths threw stones at police officers, who responded with tear gas and live rounds fired into the air.
The violence resulted in at least two public service vehicles being torched, another vehicle damaged, and the local police station vandalized.
Furniture lining Mathare Road was set ablaze and used as bonfire barricades while wholesale shops were raided for food and clothes.
Traders hurriedly closed their shops as the situation spiraled out of control.
Edwin Masibo, who was heading home along Kangundo Road around 8 PM, described the scene: “We stumbled on hundreds of youth looting and assaulting people.
They were taking away phones, wallets and IDs as shops were vandalized. It was complete chaos.”
Human rights activist Hussein Khalid of VOCAL Africa has alleged that officers initially resisted recording the incident in the Occurrence Book before yielding following public pressure.
The family’s first attempt to record a statement at Huruma Police Station on Sunday morning was reportedly thwarted, though they were eventually allowed entry around noon.
“We have spoken with the mother. The family has tried to access Huruma Police Station to record a statement and up to this point, the police have not allowed us in,” Khalid said, calling for immediate accountability and condemning police violence against innocent citizens.
The Independent Policing Oversight Authority deployed a Rapid Response Team from its Nairobi Regional Office on Sunday to commence investigations into the fatal shooting.
In a statement released Monday morning, IPOA Vice Chairperson Ann Wanjiku Mwangi confirmed that investigators are actively gathering evidence, interviewing witnesses, and analyzing available samples and exhibits.
“IPOA extends its condolences to the family of Ms. Sheril Adhiambo, calls for calm, and assures the public and the bereaved family of its commitment to conducting independent, impartial, and thorough investigations to establish culpability and ensure accountability,” the statement read.
The National Police Service has urged residents to allow investigations to proceed peacefully.
Spokesperson Michael Muchiri acknowledged the tragic death while calling for de-escalation.
“The public is asked to allow the processes of transparency and accountability to take place and to desist from further acts of lawlessness.”
However, VOCAL Africa and other human rights organizations are demanding swift action.
The organization has pledged to support the Adhiambo family in seeking justice and is calling for the immediate arrest of the officer responsible for the shooting.
This incident has reignited the national conversation about police accountability and the use of lethal force in Kenya, particularly in informal settlements where similar tragedies have occurred with alarming frequency.
As investigations continue, one question haunts Huruma: How many more innocent lives must be lost before meaningful police reforms take hold?
The deceased’s body is at City Mortuary pending autopsy.
