The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) has moved to court seeking orders to access CCTV footage of former Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang'i's Karen home in Nairobi on the night of an alleged police raid.
In an application filed at the Chief Magistrate’s Court in Milimani, the county DCI headquarters, Nairobi, says it wants to unmask the people involved in the alleged raid, following claims that they were police officers.
It says preliminary investigations have established that the residential premises are covered by CCTV cameras installed, manned and controlled by private security firm Bob Morgan Security Services Ltd.
According to the court papers, the detectives are investigating a case of an alleged attempted robbery.
The DCI disputes claims that police were involved in the raid and says the National Police Service did not sanction it, making it necessary to access the CCTV footage.
The DCI is seeking orders compelling the private security company manager or his agents to allow the investigators to extract the footage for the period between 6pm on February 8 and midday February 9, 2023.
"The applicant is praying that an order be served upon Bob Morgan Security Services Ltd to provide access of the server system installed within the residential L.R No 12302/9 Karen Ngong View in Karen, and retrieval of the CCTV footage by the Director of Criminal Investigations cyber forensic expert and any other police officer authorised by the County DCI headquarters Nairobi," reads an affidavit filed by Chief Inspector Eunice Njue.
Ms Njue states that on the morning of February 7, the media circulated news regarding a purported raid at Dr Matiang'i's Nairobi home by unknown persons alleged to be police officers.
"The investigation team is apprehensive that if the CCTV footage is not promptly secured, the crucial evidence might be lost and thus plunging the ongoing investigations into jeopardy," says the inspector.
She adds that according to Section 106B of Evidence Act the footage must be certified by an expert for it to be admissible in court since it is electronic evidence.
The move comes after the High Court barred police from arresting the former CS and granted him a Sh200,000 anticipatory bail.
The court declined to grant the orders the DCI sought but Resident Magistrate Wandia Nyamu directed it to furnish the private security firm with the application.
