NAIROBI, Kenya – The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) has come under harsh criticism after reports emerged that its officers had re-arrested renowned Kenyan influencer Francis Gaitho.
According to Kenyan-based blogger Cyprian Nyakundi, Gaitho was arrested early Wednesday, August 7, by DCI sleuths shortly after attending a mention of his previous case at the Milimani Law Courts in Nairobi.
“The @DCI_Kenya are now at Francis Gaitho’s apartment ransacking it, without a court order, allegedly looking for a phone that is nowhere to be seen,” Nyakundi posted on his official X (formerly Twitter) after the alleged arrest.
In a series of X posts seen by Y News, Nyakundi also claimed that officers also took Gaitho to his rural home, where they ransacked his parents’ home looking for his phone, all without a search order.
“The @DCI_Kenya have failed to get Francis Gaitho’s phone after searching his parents’ rural home and his apartment without search orders. They are now taking him to DCI Kiambu Road,” Nyakundi added.
However, the DCI has yet to comment on the alleged arrest of Gaitho.
Gaitho, a social media influencer, was accused on July 18, 2024, of disseminating false information, alleging that the DCI had wrongly detained the correct individual as the main suspect in the Kware killings.
Gaitho was accused of purposefully posting fake material on his X social media account on July 15, 2024, at approximately 1400 hours, when he was at an undisclosed location.
According to the prosecution, Gaitho composed the data with the intention that it would be regarded as authentic and used accordingly.
Gaitho was charged with a second offence for using his X account to publish false information about an innocent Kenyan during the Kware killings on the exact dates and location. He should have known or was aware, that the person would be alarmed and violent towards him and that the publication would cause property damage or loss.
Y News understands that Gaitho refuted the accusations and begged for a reasonable bond arrangement before Robinson Ondieki, the senior principal magistrate in Milimani.
Gaitho was detained at his house; therefore, his lawyer informed the court that he posed no flight danger.
However, the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP) requested that Gaitho’s passport be deposited in court.
He was freed after posting a Sh30,000 cash bond ahead of a mention of the case on August 1, 2024.
The country is experiencing rising heat, and calls for Thursday, August 8, to be the “Mother of All Protests” are growing. This coincides with Gaitho’s alleged detention.
Y News has established that the Nane Nane March demonstrations will serve as a litmus test for President William Ruto’s proposed broad-based government.
After the president reappointed 10 of the 22 people he had sacked, disgruntled Kenyan youth returned to fury, despair, and disenfranchisement with the head of state. In addition, the head of state nominated four persons from the opposition to his Kenya Kwanza Cabinet.
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Since then, President Ruto and Raila Odinga, the leader of the opposition, have stated that they are now collaborating to unite Kenyans and end the anti-government demonstrations.
Some Kenyan youngsters need more support with this decision. Once more, social media timelines are overflowing with banners advocating for the “Mother of All Protests,” also known as the Nane Nane March.
The current wave of demonstrations presents a unique challenge to the proposed broad-based government.
If the demonstrations go as planned, it will be evident immediately that the newly formed Ruto-Raila combination needs to satisfy the youth more.
