State House Nairobi. President Kenyatta was at the Muthaiga Golf Club
when an intruder was shot dead by security officers. PHOTO | NATION
MEDIA GROUP
Presidential Guard marksmen shot dead an intruder inside the
State House compound last Sunday as President Uhuru Kenyatta was
attending a golf tournament in Muthaiga, the Sunday Nation can reveal.
In
an incident that has remained top secret as investigations continue a
week later, the unidentified middle-aged man is said to have illegally
accessed the highly protected grounds shortly before 5 pm and was at a
parking area not far from the main building, when he was spotted by
elite General Service Unit officers who guard the grounds.
Multiple
sources, but who spoke in confidence, said security officials believe
the man had jumped over the fence since it is virtually impossible to
access the grounds from any of the several gates without authorisation.
This is the first time anybody has been shot inside
the grounds in what would be the third reported case of an intruder to
State House since President Kenyatta moved to the premises in 2013.
When
he was shot, the man had just passed the new administration building
that houses various departments and had reached the public car park when
he was confronted by security personnel who shot him. One source told
the Nation the intruder was found with a knife but another said he was unarmed.
CLEAN UP AREA
The
officers then called in the State House fire brigade to clean up the
area. The body was moved to the City Mortuary by the police on the same
day and was booked as an “unknown” man shot on Dennis Pritt Road – one
of the roads near the President’s official residence. Nobody had claimed
the body by Friday.
“The President was briefed about the incident as he left Muthaiga Golf Club,” said one of our sources.
On arrival, the President is said to have left to inspect his nearby private residence that is undergoing major renovations.
Security
was heightened but there were no indications of any danger to the
President – who was away at the time — or the First Family.
The
public car park – near Gates A and D – is located less than 200 metres
from the main building which has the office of the President and the
living quarters of the First Family and a few metres from a new
administration building.
Gate A is used by the
President, Deputy President and other VIPs while Gate D is used by State
House staff, the public and media when invited to State House. Entry
is, however, restricted and nobody is allowed to take photographs
outside State House.
Not even Cabinet Secretaries and members of the President’s extended family are spared the rigorous checks at the gates.
For
one to gain access, there must be an invitation from officials and
details of the individuals posted with GSU officers manning the gate for
easy identification. Anyone whose details are not with GSU is often
turned away by the no-nonsense officers.
Planes are
also prohibited from overflying State House. All State Houses across the
country are guarded by members of the “G” company of GSU. The current
head of G Company is Mr George Nderitu, one-time bodyguard of former
President Mwai Kibaki.
DECLINED TO COMMENT
On Saturday, State House Spokesman Manoah Esipisu declined to comment on the issue.
“I won’t respond to that,” he told the Nation.
“I won’t respond to that,” he told the Nation.
Inspector-General
of Police Joseph Boinnet, head of the Directorate of Criminal
Investigations Ndegwa Muhoro, and Nairobi County Commander Japheth Koome
did not respond to our enquiries yesterday despite several calls and
text messages to their mobile phones.
The
investigations on the incident are, however, said to involve top
officers drawn from the presidential security, regular police, and the
National Intelligence Service units. The identity of the dead man had
not been revealed by the time of gong to press.
A
senior government official, who declined to be quoted for this story,
said the final report is yet to be circulated to state officials.
“I
do not have a full operational report, police would be in a better
position to comment on that issue,” he said, adding that only the State
House Spokesman could comment on record as the matter was sensitive.
The
G Company are different from the equally dreaded Recce
squad counterparts who often are spotted in dark suits around the
President, Deputy President and former Presidents. Incidents
of intruders gaining access to State House are rare but they happen
nonetheless.
On March 6, 2016, 29-year-old William Njuguna left Uhuru Park passing by the Central Park and later went to the State House.
JUMPED TWO FENCES
Upon
reaching his destination and assessing the environment, he jumped two
fences to get into the State House compound and started walking around
before being spotted by the GSU officers who detained him and handed him
over to the Anti-Terrorism Police.
He said that he
pulls a mkokoteni (handcart) in Nairobi and was only “curious” to see
how the seat of power looked like. He was charged with trespassing.
“I
wanted to see State House with my own eyes, how it looks like, since I
only see it in newspapers and TV. I was curious,” he told the court.
A
month later, he was set free by the court but barely two days later, on
April 7, he was found dead at Uhuru Park. He had a wound to the head
inflicted by a blunt object although who did it remains a mystery.
On October 27, 2015, Mr Walter Juma was arrested inside State House grounds by the GSU.
He was booked at Kilimani Police Station. Anti-Terrorism Police Unit interrogated him before he was charged.
He
would later tell the court that he had arrived at 10 pm at night and
that this was not his first time at the highly protected area. He
claimed the President was his friend.
On December 22,
2002, just five days to the General Election that would see President
Daniel Moi out of power, a man in what appeared to be religious garb
sneaked into the State House building and spent the night just metres
away from the President’s office in a major security lapse.
He
was found a few minutes before the President reported to work. It was
discovered that Mr Onyango Mono eluded the tight security to enter the
protected area unnoticed.
Subordinate staff found him sleeping on the carpet at 7 am and alerted guards as anxiety set in.
After interrogation, he said he had been sent by God to President Moi to tell him to hand over power immediately.
Mr
Onyango, who had sneaked in through Gate C, was later found to have
been mentally unstable but the mystery of how he confidently walked past
the security personnel lingers.
Another presidential
security breach took place in March 2004 during the State opening of
Parliament when Mr Peter Mwai entered the main chambers and sat among
top judges and clergy — just a few metres from President Mwai Kibaki.
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