NAIROBI, Kenya — The Kenya Police Service (KPS) has dismissed claims by Nandi Senator Samson Cherargei that senior police officers were quietly transferred following the assault of youths at a pool hall in Nandi Hills, an incident that sparked national outrage after it was captured on CCTV.
In a statement issued on Thursday, February 6, 2026, KPS described the alleged transfer reports circulating online as fake, saying they did not originate from the Service.
The clarification followed sharp criticism from Senator Cherargei, who accused police leadership of shielding those responsible through administrative reshuffles instead of disciplinary or criminal action.
Earlier in the week, Cherargei claimed that several senior officers had been moved following the January 10 assault, which involved multiple officers storming a pool hall and beating young men who were playing pool.
He shared what he described as an internal document indicating that the Officer Commanding Police Division (OCPD) Tinderet had been transferred to Lang’ata Sub-County, the Officer Commanding Station (OCS) Songoh moved to Central Police Station, and the OCS Nandi Hills reassigned to Pangani Police Station.
The document further alleged that the Officer in Charge of the Rapid Deployment Unit (RDU) at Songoh Camp had been seconded elsewhere.
Cherargei faulted the National Police Service for what he termed a weak response, insisting that transfers would amount to a “travesty of justice” if not accompanied by disciplinary or criminal proceedings.
“After the much-hyped administrative action by the Inspector General of Police, the officers were only ‘rewarded’ by mere transfers instead of disciplinary action and criminal proceedings,” the senator said, maintaining that officers directly involved in the assault were still at large.
However, KPS disowned the purported transfer document, stating that it was fabricated and had not been issued by the Service. The denial has raised fresh questions over the status of disciplinary measures following the incident.
The controversy stems from a directive issued on January 31, 2026, when Inspector General Douglas Kanja ordered immediate administrative action against six senior officers in Tinderet, Songoh and Nandi Hills. At the time, the National Police Service said the move followed investigations by the Internal Affairs Unit after CCTV footage of the assault went viral.
The Service said the action was meant to reinforce accountability and demonstrate zero tolerance for police misconduct, while expressing regret over the incident and sympathy for the victims. It did not, however, disclose what steps would be taken against the officers seen on camera inside the pool hall.
The assault incident occurred on January 10, when at least eight police officers were captured on CCTV storming a pool hall in Nandi Hills and assaulting young men. In the footage, the officers ordered the youths to lie on the floor, forced them to hold their national identity cards in their mouths, and caned them. The motive for the operation has not been officially explained.
Human rights groups condemned the incident as a blatant abuse of police power, calling for accountability for both the officers involved and their commanders. The case remains under investigation as pressure mounts for transparent disciplinary and criminal action.
