NAKURU, Kenya — Detectives have lifted fingerprints from the vehicle in which Standard Group Associate Editor Alex Kiprotich was travelling when armed men intercepted and abducted him at the Gilgil Weighbridge along the Nakuru-Nairobi Highway.
Forensic Crime Scene Investigations officers dusted and examined the vehicle on Friday as detectives intensified efforts to identify the men who allegedly seized the journalist.
The forensic exercise began early Friday at the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) Regional Headquarters in Nakuru, where investigators processed the vehicle for possible evidence that could help establish the identities of those involved.
Kiprotich was also meeting DCI officers as investigations into his abduction continued.
The examination of the vehicle is expected to provide investigators with potential forensic leads, including fingerprints that could help establish whether the suspects left identifiable evidence inside or on the vehicle.
DCI investigates abduction
The latest forensic operation comes amid growing pressure on security agencies to establish who abducted Kiprotich and why.
The journalist was reportedly intercepted by armed men at the Gilgil Weighbridge while travelling along the busy Nakuru-Nairobi highway.
The circumstances of the incident have generated concern within the media fraternity and renewed scrutiny of allegations of abductions involving individuals believed to be acting outside established police structures.
Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen said on Thursday that police were investigating the incident.
The abduction had been blamed on an alleged special police squad said to operate outside the formal structures of command and authority.
However, Murkomen on Friday denied the existence of such a special squad.
The conflicting claims have added to questions surrounding the identity and affiliation of the armed men who intercepted Kiprotich’s vehicle.
Police deny involvement
The National Police Service (NPS) has also denied being behind the abduction.
The service said it had launched investigations to establish the identity of the heavily armed individuals who were involved in the incident.
NPS spokesperson Muchiri Nyaga said Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja had directed the Anti-Abduction Unit to immediately investigate the case.
The investigation includes establishing the identity of the men seen ordering occupants out of Kiprotich’s vehicle.
“The NPS treats kidnapping and abduction with the utmost seriousness, as these grave offences threaten the lives, liberty and security of Kenyans,” Nyaga said.
The statement placed the responsibility for identifying the alleged abductors on investigators while distancing the police service from accusations that its officers were responsible.
Fingerprints could provide key evidence
The decision to process the vehicle for fingerprints represents a significant step in the investigation because forensic evidence could help investigators establish who came into contact with it during the incident.
Detectives from the DCI’s Forensic Crime Scene Investigations Department examined the vehicle at the Nakuru regional headquarters.
Investigators can use fingerprints and other material recovered from a crime scene to compare potential suspects against existing forensic records or evidence collected during the investigation.
The forensic examination could therefore provide an important lead if usable prints are recovered and successfully matched.
The process also gives investigators an opportunity to preserve physical evidence before the vehicle is returned to normal use.
Meeting with DCI investigators
While the forensic examination was taking place, Kiprotich was in a meeting with DCI officers.
The engagement forms part of efforts by investigators to establish a detailed account of what happened before, during and after the interception.
Information from the journalist and other occupants or witnesses could help detectives reconstruct the sequence of events, including where the armed men approached the vehicle, how they identified or targeted Kiprotich and what happened after he was taken away.
Investigators are also expected to examine available information surrounding the vehicle and the scene at Gilgil Weighbridge.
Special squad allegations under scrutiny
The case has taken on wider significance because of claims that a special police unit operating outside the formal command structure could have been involved.
Such allegations have been strongly contested by the government and the National Police Service.
Murkomen’s denial of the existence of the alleged squad came a day after he said police were investigating the abduction.
The NPS has similarly rejected responsibility for the incident and said its Anti-Abduction Unit is working to establish who the armed men were.
At this stage, there is no publicly established evidence identifying the abductors or proving that they were police officers.
The allegations should therefore be treated as unproven pending the outcome of investigations.
Media freedom concerns
Kiprotich’s abduction has also raised fresh concerns about the safety of journalists in Kenya.
The Standard Group Associate Editor was intercepted while travelling on one of the country’s major highways, with reports indicating that heavily armed men ordered occupants out of the vehicle.
Any determination that state officers were involved would raise serious questions about accountability, due process and the protection of journalists. Conversely, establishing that the suspects were criminal actors operating independently would shift the investigation towards identifying and prosecuting those responsible.
Either way, the circumstances surrounding the incident require investigators to establish the facts and make the evidence public where legally possible.
Investigation now turns to forensic evidence
The fingerprint examination gives detectives a potentially important avenue as they seek to move beyond competing claims about who was responsible.
Investigators will need to establish whether the prints recovered from the vehicle belong to known individuals, whether they can be linked to other evidence and whether they help reconstruct the events at the Gilgil Weighbridge.
Other investigative avenues could include witness accounts, available surveillance footage, communication records and information gathered from the scene, subject to legal procedures.
For now, however, the identity and motive of the alleged abductors remain unclear.
The NPS says the Anti-Abduction Unit is actively investigating, while the DCI’s forensic team has begun processing physical evidence from the vehicle.
The outcome of those investigations will be critical in determining whether the claims of police involvement can be substantiated or disproved.
For Kiprotich and the wider media fraternity, the central demand remains the same: establish who abducted the journalist, why he was targeted and whether any state officials were involved.
