Embu residents protest over abduction of college student Billy Munyiri
Chaos rocked Embu town on Friday as residents took to the streets to protest the abduction of student Billy Munyiri Mwangi.
They held demonstrations for the better part of the morning, demanding Mr Mwangi's unconditional release.
The protesters barricaded the streets and lit bonfires while singing war and freedom songs, causing tension in the normally busy town.
They blamed the government for Mr Mwangi's abduction and demanded that he be produced.
Billy Mwangi who has been missing since Saturday after being abducted by unknown people.
"Freedom is coming," shouted one of the demonstrators.
At one point, the stone-throwing protesters confronted traders and motorists.
Business in the town came to a standstill as traders rushed to close their shops for fear of looting.
As tensions rose, Manyatta MP Gitonga Mukunji arrived and joined the protesters, but urged them not to destroy property.
He urged them to demonstrate peacefully, saying there was no need for violence.
"Let's demand justice in a peaceful manner," he told the hostile crowd.
Police patrolled the streets but didn't interfere with the protesters.
A boda boda operator rides past bonfires lit by residents protesting the abduction of university student Billy Munyiri Mwangi in Embu town on 27 December 27, 2024.
On December 21, Mwangi, 24, was waiting to be shaved at a barber shop in Embu town when a white double-cab pick-up truck pulled up.
Four hooded men, suspected to be government security agents, got out, grabbed the unsuspecting college student and, to the astonishment of onlookers, began dragging him towards the car.
The men then bundled Mr Mwangi into the vehicle and drove off at high speed, causing tension in the area. According to the family, their son was taken away at around 3pm on Saturday.
Earlier, Embu County Police Commander Samuel Muthamia confirmed that he had received a report of the abduction.
"It is true that a report was made at the police station that a young man was missing after being abducted, but the unfortunate thing is that no one took the number plate of the vehicle," he said.
He said preliminary investigations revealed that Mr Mwangi's phone was switched off immediately after he was abducted, just 400 metres from the scene.
A protester lights a bonfire in Embu town on December 27, 2024. Residents were protesting the abduction of a student, Billy Munyiri Mwangi.
He said detectives were trying to establish Mr Mwangi's whereabouts and the motive behind the abduction.
"We have used all our working mechanisms to try and establish where Mr Mwangi could be and I believe we will be able to locate him using all possible means," he said.
Embu residents reiterated that the continued abduction of citizens, especially the Gen Zs, only confirms the growing public feeling that the government does not believe in the rule of law.
