KIAMBU, Kenya — The National Police Service (NPS) on Wednesday officially communicated the death of Officer Benedict Kabiru, who was killed during a gang ambush in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, earlier this year.
Reports of Kabiru’s death first surfaced in March, but police at the time dismissed them, stating that he was only missing.
On Wednesday, senior NPS officials visited Kabiru’s family in Kiambu County to deliver the confirmation in person. Authorities, however, said the officer’s body has yet to be recovered.
Kabiru’s uncle and family spokesman, Daniel Kabiru, said eight senior officers visited their home around 8 pm to relay the news.
The family had sought clarity in court a day earlier, filing a petition alleging that information about Kabiru’s death had been withheld.
During the court session, the Attorney General’s office said it had not been informed of the officer’s death.
This stood in contrast to remarks made by President William Ruto on September 22 at a United Nations Council meeting, where he named Kabiru among three Kenyan officers killed while serving in the Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission in Haiti.
The family referenced the President’s statement, which read in part: “I must use this occasion to honour the Kenyan officers, Samuel Kitwai, Benedict Kabiru, and Kennedy Nzuve who lost their lives in the line of duty.”
“If the President’s statement is accurate, then it effectively disposes of the request for information since confirmation has already been made at the highest level,” the family’s legal counsel told the court.
Following the visit from NPS officials, the family confirmed the President’s remarks to be true.
