Two senior police officers in Mombasa are at risk of serving a six-month sentence for contempt of court after allegedly disregarding court orders by preventing peaceful protests and deploying unidentifiable, plain-clothes officers to suppress dissent.
This is after the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) filed an urgent petition on Tuesday, accusing Mombasa County Commander Peter Kimani and Sub County Commander Maxwell Agoro of flouting two High Court orders issued in August 2024.
These orders were meant to guarantee that police followed proper procedures during protests, including wearing clearly marked uniforms and refraining from using unidentifiable, plain-clothes officers to quash demonstrations.
The petitioner now wants the two police bosses in the coast region cited for contempt of court for continued disregarding orders issued by Justices Lawrence Mugambi and Thande Mugure in Nairobi and Malindi, adding to the growing sense of lawlessness within the police service.
“We call for the immediate arrest and conviction of Kimani and Agoro for contempt of court,” LSK seeks.
The petition demands that the two officers be sentenced to six months in prison unless they provide a written commitment within 14 days to abide by the court’s orders and guarantee non-repetition of their actions.
These orders were meant to guarantee that police followed proper procedures during protests, including wearing clearly marked uniforms and refraining from using unidentifiable, plain-clothes officers to quash demonstrations.
“Their defiance of court orders is a slap in the face of the judicial system and a dangerous precedent that must be addressed,” says Florence Muturi, CEO of the Law Society of Kenya.
“We are asking the court to take urgent and decisive action to ensure that such abuses do not continue and that the integrity of the judiciary is upheld.”
In the petition, LSK contends that the two officers have consistently violated citizens’ rights to peacefully assemble and protest, further undermining the authority of the judiciary.
The petition follows a series of violent clashes between protesters and police on January 6, 2025, during a planned demonstration in Mombasa.
“The actions of Kimani and Agoro represent a direct challenge to the rule of law and the Constitution,” say Muturi, in an affidavit in support of the petition.
“Their blatant disregard for court orders and their deployment of unmarked officers to violently suppress peaceful protests has created an atmosphere of fear and tension in Mombasa.”
The protest in question was organized by activists who had formally notified the police of their intention to hold a peaceful march against the rising abductions of government critics.
However, despite this legal notice, police, including many officers in plain clothes, responded with overwhelming force, resulting in violent clashes.
A video captured during the protest shows plain-clothes officers engaging with protesters in a violent manner, pushing and shoving them as they attempted to present a petition to the executive office of the President.
“The protesters were simply exercising their constitutional right to protest, yet they were met with brutality from officers who refused to identify themselves as law enforcement,” says Muturi.
“This is not just a case of police brutality; it is an affront to the rule of law.”
The petition highlights concerns about a disturbing emerging pattern of abuses by the National Police Service (NPS), particularly in Mombasa, where authorities have been accused of using excessive force against activists.
According to LSK, this violent response has been compounded by the disturbing use of plain-clothes officers, often unaccountable for their actions.
The LSK’s petition further draws attention to the alarming rise in abductions across Kenya, with many victims allegedly taken by plain-clothes officers in unmarked vehicles.
” Since June 2024, the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) has documented 82 cases of abductions, many involving plain-clothes officers, some of whom reportedly used unmarked vehicles,” court papers states.
The LSK argues that Kimani and Agoro, as the police bosses in Mombasa, bear responsibility for these unlawful actions.
“The Mombasa County Commander and Sub County Commander have not only failed to protect the rights of the protesters but have also actively obstructed their right to assemble peacefully, thus violating the court’s orders,” the petition states.
“Unless immediate action is taken to address these breaches, we risk seeing further erosion of the public’s confidence in both the police and the judiciary,” said advocate Marc Chirchir, who is representing the LSK in the case.
The LSK also calls for an investigation into the growing problem of police officers in plain clothes who fail to identify themselves during protests or arrests.
The petition argues that this lack of accountability only fuels public anxiety, with many citizens becoming increasingly wary of interacting with officers who appear to operate without the transparency and oversight expected of law enforcement personnel.
“It is becoming clear that the public has little trust in unmarked officers, especially when they act violently and without accountability,” said Muturi.
“This practice must end if we are to restore public faith in the police force and the justice system.”
