NAIROBI, Kenya – Three mourners shot dead by police during the national farewell for former Prime Minister Raila Odinga at Nairobi’s Kasarani Stadium were far from the confrontation that triggered gunfire, a BBC Africa Eye investigation has found.
The investigation, published nearly a year after the October 16, 2025, incident, analysed more than 1,500 images and videos to establish where the victims were when police opened fire.
BBC analysis placed the three victims between approximately 60 and 160 metres from clashes near the VIP pavilion, where some mourners had attempted to force their way into a restricted section.
The findings challenge any suggestion that the three victims were directly involved in the confrontation that preceded the shooting.
Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen defended the police response, describing it as “restrained” after some people in the crowd began throwing objects at officers.
The BBC confirmed that objects, including plastic chairs, were thrown but said it had found no evidence that stones were among them.
BBC Traces Fatal Shots To Elite Police Unit
The investigation reconstructed events inside the stadium and identified at least eight officers operating together in tactical clothing and military camouflage. The officers carried assault rifles, had their faces covered and wore no visible insignia.
Their uniforms and movements were consistent with a security unit assigned to protect President William Ruto and other senior officials, according to the BBC.
At least three officers from the group appeared to fire their weapons during the incident. The BBC identified three officers as members of an elite unit responsible for presidential protection.
However, the investigation could not establish which bullets killed each victim or rule out the possibility that other officers also fired inside the stadium.
The Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) is still investigating the deaths and the police response. Nearly a year after the incident, no one has been held accountable.
Murkomen said the government was awaiting the outcome of the independent investigation before taking appropriate legal action.
“The investigations are being done by an independent police oversight authority, we believe that their findings will help us take appropriate legal action,” he told the BBC.
Asked about the conduct of officers, Murkomen said he did not believe anyone had deliberately ordered them to shoot, suggesting the decisions were made in the heat of the moment.
Three Mourners Killed In Stadium Shooting
One of the victims was Evans Kiche, a 40-year-old chef and father of seven. BBC analysis placed him about 60 metres from the confrontation when he sustained a fatal gunshot wound to the head.
The other victims were Vincent Ogutu and Jidah Burka, who were at least 160 metres from the VIP pavilion, in the opposite stands.
Autopsy reports cited by the BBC showed that Ogutu died from a gunshot wound to the chest, while 42-year-old Burka was shot in the head.
The BBC’s findings suggest the victims were well away from the immediate clashes between mourners and officers.
Chaos Erupted After Venue Change
Raila, one of Kenya’s most influential political figures and the country’s longest-serving opposition leader, died on October 15, 2025, while receiving medical treatment in India.
His death at the age of 80 triggered an outpouring of grief, with thousands gathering at Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport as his body was flown home.
The former Prime Minister’s body had initially been scheduled to lie in state at Parliament. However, the scale of the crowds and fears of a security breach prompted a last-minute change of venue to Kasarani Stadium.
Officials said they had little time to secure the 48,000-capacity venue. Thousands of mourners subsequently spilled onto the pitch and into the stands, with access and crowd control becoming difficult.
After waiting for several hours in temperatures of about 30°C, some mourners grew frustrated by the lack of a public address system to provide updates.
A section of the crowd began throwing objects, including plastic chairs, at officers guarding the VIP pavilion as people pushed towards the restricted area. Police then fired live rounds, although footage analysed by the BBC showed that crowds elsewhere in the stadium remained largely peaceful.
Three people were killed in the shooting.
Widow Says Family Still Seeking Answers
Ogutu had not initially planned to attend the farewell, his wife, Yvonne Akinyi, told the BBC. He was in central Nairobi with friends on the morning of October 16 when they saw crowds heading to Kasarani and decided to join them.
Within hours, he was dead.
Akinyi said her husband’s death had left their children without their father and her struggling to come to terms with the loss.
“The people who we look at to protect us, these are the people that cause us this pain. These are the people that make us to become young widows in this country, young orphans in this county,” she said.
As she prepared to mark the first anniversary of her husband’s death, Akinyi said she still had no clear explanation for why he was killed while attending a government-organised farewell.
“I will just try to be that strong woman. Very strong. But deep inside there is a hole,” she said.
“It is very painful because sometimes you just sit down and ask yourself. At Kasarani there were so many people, so many of them. Why him.”
Police Watchdog Investigation Still Pending
National Police Service acknowledged lessons from the incident, telling the BBC that the events had provided “a fundamental learning curve for a better, more professional application in the future.”
IPOA did not respond to the BBC’s request for comment.
The ongoing investigation is expected to help establish the circumstances surrounding the deaths and determine whether any officers should face legal action.
