He Was My Only Child… Now He’s Gone

When an only child visits their parents, joy and happiness fill the home. You can only imagine how delighted Meshack Ojwang was to receive his only son and child, Albert Ojwang, who lived and worked in Voi, miles away from his parents.

Out of Albert’s 31 years of life, Meshack had spent about 20 of them toiling, giving his all in the name of building his son’s future.

He worked in a quarry, doing everything he could to ensure Albert went to school, attained a degree, and secured a job. Nature repaid his hard work, and it was finally time for Meshack to rest and reap the fruits of his labour.

But no one, not even Albert himself, was prepared for what followed.

“They found my son eating with his wife and child. They introduced themselves as officers from DCI Nairobi, sent to pick him up,” Meshack recalls.

What was his offence, you may ask?

“They said my son had allegedly defamed a police boss, and he had asked for him,” Meshack continues. From the tone of his voice, you can tell he still hopes it is all just a dream.

Afraid of what might happen to his son, he followed Albert to the police station—unaware that his son would never return home alive.

Albert was later transferred from Homabay to Nairobi’s Central Police Station, where he died on Sunday, June 8.

“We awaited his arraignment in court on Monday so we could follow up the case from there. But today, his father, who came to follow up after the arrest, informed me his son was dead. It is quite unfortunate,” said Julius Juma, the family lawyer.

When the police officers were asked to give their side of the story, this is what they said:

“There was a complaint that had been launched by the Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG), Eliud Kipkoech Lagat, about his name being tarnished. It is on that basis that investigations were being carried out,” said Inspector General of Police, Douglas Kanja.

The police claimed they found Albert unconscious in his cell and rushed him to Mbagathi Hospital, where he succumbed to head injuries allegedly sustained from banging his head against the wall. His body was later taken to City Mortuary.

However, an autopsy conducted on Tuesday, June 10, by government pathologist Bernard Midia, revealed otherwise.

“When we examined… the pattern of the injury, especially the trauma found on the head… Hitting against a blunt substance like a wall would have a distinct pattern. But the bleeds we found on the scalp… on the skin of the head were spaced out, including on the face, sides of the head, and the back of the head,” said Midia. He added, “When we tie that together with other injuries spread across the body—including the upper limbs and the trunk—then this is unlikely to be a self-inflicted injury.”

Now, the reality of how dire the situation is has dawned on Kenyans. Social media is filled with rage, calls for justice, and suggestions to take to the streets in protest for Albert and his family.

What makes the public even more emotional is the visible pain of Meshack. His first press conference after losing his son was heart-wrenching. His eyes were moist, too moist that he cried a river. He was trying to be strong, but the pain of losing a son demands a strength that few can muster.

The biggest worry remains, just as BBC journalist Larry Madowo puts it:
“Who do you turn to when the station is the scene of the crime? Who protects you from the police?”