Did police kill innocent bank teller?

PHOTO | ANTHONY OMUYA Amos Onyango Odhiambo’s wife, Evelyne, flanked by father-in-law Rogers Odhiambo at their home in Kariobangi South on October 29, 2013, where they narrated how Onyango was shot by police.   NATION MEDIA GROUP

In Summary
Witnesses and some police officers who were at the scene when Odhiambo was shot have disputed this in interviews with the Nation
A postmortem examination conducted on Saturday established cause of death to have been caused by a gun shot to the head

 By ZADOCK ANGIRA
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A few minutes before 8pm last Thursday, Amos Anderson Onyango Odhiambo called his wife to ask what she needed so that he could pass by the supermarket and get it.

His wife, Evelyne Wavinya, told him to buy diapers for their one-year-old daughter, Anna, and food for supper.

Odhiambo, who until his death was a teller with the China Centre branch of the Cooperative Bank in Nairobi, walked into an M-Pesa outlet inside the Nakumatt Supermarket, Moi Avenue branch and withdrew money for the shopping at 7.51pm.

Five hours later, his wife would learn that he had been shot dead by police who at that time described him as an armed robber on who they had found two pistols and another man also shot in similar circumstances.

The police said the two men had carjacked a minibus on Route 23, headed to Kariobangi South.

According to Occurrence Book (OB) entry number OB75/24/10/2013, twelve mobile phones, a laptop computer and an undetermined amount of money were also found on the two men.

Part of the report read: “On reaching Heshima Road, officers on patrol intercepted the said vehicle and a shoot-out ensued whereby two robbers were fatally injured while others managed to escape with gunshot wounds.”

But witnesses and some police officers who were at the scene when Odhiambo was shot have disputed this in interviews with the Nation.

After shopping, Odhiambo boarded the ill-fated bus at the Gill House bus stop at about 8.30pm. The bus driver (name withheld) told the Nation that on reaching the Mumias/Rabai Road junction, he stopped to drop three female passengers but six armed robbers forced themselves into the vehicle. They ordered him to drive back to town as they robbed commuters.

On reaching Heshima Road, the vehicle stopped and the gangsters alighted. Soon after, officers on patrol started shooting at the vehicle. Odhiambo was among the two commuters shot dead while four others – Erick Mitches, Stephen Maina, Juliet Natumoi and Brian Munene – were seriously injured.

Some police officers who arrived at the scene of the shooting corroborated this version of events.

At 9pm, when Ms Wavinya thought Odhiambo was taking too long to get home, she called him to confirm his whereabouts but his phone went unanswered.

When she called again, a police officer answered the phone and initially pretended to be her husband.

“He said he was my husband and even asked me why I could not recognise his voice,” she said. The officer finally told her that Odhiambo had been shot dead and the body was at the City Mortuary.

At around 2am, she and other relatives reached the mortuary where Odhiambo’s body had been taken at 1.30am.

However, they were not allowed to view the body without a written consent from the police. They obtained the consent at 10am.

A postmortem examination was conducted on Saturday by Dr Dorothy Njeru and the death was established to have been caused by a gun shot to the head.

Buru Buru CID boss Henry Kiambati on Tuesday said that investigations into the shooting had been launched.
“We have opened a file for the robbery with violence and the inquest file for the slain banker,” he said.