A screengrab of a video shows hooded men brandishing guns and hurling tear gas canisters at residents and journalists during the Ol Kalou by-elections on July 16, 2026.
Kiambaa MP John Njuguna Wanjiku, popularly known as Ka-Wanjiku, has denied claims linking him to the transportation of masked men who unleashed violence during Thursday’s Ol Kalou by-election, even as a Nation investigation traced vehicles seen alongside the attackers.
The United Democratic Alliance (UDA) lawmaker admitted that his black Toyota Land Cruiser, registration KDL 477Q, was in Ol Kalou on polling day but insisted he had no role in the violence.
KDL 477Q: Black Toyota Land Cruiser registered to Kiambaa MP John Wanjiku.
“I was acting on my own,” Mr Njuguna told the Nation.
Using verified videos, timelines and open-source intelligence, the Nation reconstructed the movements of some of the masked and hooded men who lobbed teargas at residents and assaulted journalists. The investigation established that Mr Njuguna’s Land Cruiser was leading a convoy of vehicles that later picked up some of the masked men. A search of the registration number identified the vehicle as belonging to John Njuguna Wanjiku.
An amateur video recorded by a resident shows a man resembling the MP standing beside a vehicle matching the description of the Land Cruiser. He is seen speaking to a group of men before one of them, whose face is concealed by a mask, scarf and hat and who is dressed in military-style fatigues, opens the vehicle’s door for him.
One of the vehicles that was carrying hooded gunmen who lobbed tear gas at a crowd that had denied them access to AC Primary School polling station. The men also assaulted journalists filming the scene before they made away with two cameras.
In an interview with the Nation, Mr Njuguna confirmed he was the man in the footage and that the vehicle belonged to him. He, however, denied any wrongdoing, saying he encountered armed groups while patrolling Ol Kalou to mobilise support for the UDA candidate.
“The person with me was my personal bodyguard, my aide and my cameramen. We got stuck on the road because it was barricaded. So, when we came out, we came to remove the stones. On the other side, there were goons, and our lives were actually threatened at that time. We were at a dead end, so we needed to go back,” he said. “When we turned back to AC polling centre, we met these men purporting to be goons in Prados, and we were on our way to escape because we were patrolling the area on our own.”
Mr Njuguna said he had been in Ol Kalou for more than a month and was checking on the safety of UDA mobilisers and polling agents. The video also shows his vehicle alongside a white Toyota Harrier, registration KDX 410K. A search linked the vehicle to MKS Investments Company, which reportedly imports and trades motor vehicles. Company records identify its owner as Khalique Mansoor, a Pakistani national.
Mr Njuguna claimed the occupants of the Harrier appeared to belong to a rival political camp and were fleeing the violence.
The Nation contacted MKS Investments Limited to establish whether the vehicle belonged to the company and, if so, why it was at the scene. It had not responded by the time of publication.
Elsewhere in Ol Kalou, near a polling station, another black Toyota Land Cruiser bearing registration KDW 600Q was filmed carrying hooded and masked men.
KDW 600Q: Black Land Cruiser registered to Vipingo Industries Limuited. Company says they have same number plate, but for white Toyota Probox.
A search found the registration number listed under Vipingo Industries Limited, based in Mtwapa, Kilifi County. The company manufactures products including Dola flour, Golden Drop cooking oil and Vipingo cream soap. However, records on the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) portal describe the registered vehicle as a white Toyota station wagon, with only a numerical vehicle code provided.
When contacted, Vipingo Industries said it owns no black Toyota Land Cruiser. Instead, it said it owns a white Toyota Probox carrying the same registration number, KDW 600Q. The discrepancy raises questions over how the same registration number could appear on two vehicles of different makes and models.
Asked about the anomaly, the NTSA said only one registration number is issued to one vehicle.
“The National Transport and Safety Authority allocates only one registration number to one vehicle. Cases of fake plates, forged or ghost plates, are rampant, criminal and a threat to safety,” the authority said.
Vipingo Industries said it had no connection with the vehicles seen during the by-election and had reported the matter at Eldoret Police Station under OB No. 14/18/7/2026. On Saturday, the company also posted photographs on social media showing its white Probox bearing registration KDW 600Q, captioning the images: “Facts matter. [This is] the real KDW 600Q.”
KCQ 488H: Silver Toyota Prado. However, it is registered as a Black Mercedez Benz belonging to Mr Peter Njenga.
Another vehicle captured during the violence bore registration KCQ 488H. NTSA records show it is registered to Peter Njenga Kamau and identify it as a Mercedes-Benz. However, the vehicle seen in Ol Kalou was a silver Toyota Prado.
The final vehicle whose registration was identified was KDJ 032F, a black Toyota Prado registered jointly to Florence Wamuyu Njuki and Beatrice Wambui Wamwiri.
KDJ 032F: Black Toyota Prado listed under Florence Wamuyu Njuki and Beatrice Wambui Wamwiri
The investigation also raises questions over how the masked men, who police have said were not officers, accessed teargas canisters and firearms.
A source familiar with police operations told the Nation that senior officers were increasingly frustrated by pressure from politically connected individuals seeking to influence law enforcement.
The source cited a female politician from Central Kenya who allegedly invokes President William Ruto’s name while asking officers to undertake duties outside their legal mandate.
“There is a disquiet among police officers in [a Central Kenya county], who keep receiving calls from the woman who wants to use them in ways that police are not supposed to be used. However, when it comes to bearing responsibility, the police are left on their own,” the source said.
Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen, however, maintained that the Inspector-General of Police remained solely responsible for security operations.
“There is no parallel system of security in this nation. There is only one Inspector-General of Police, and there is one National Police Service that is accountable to the people of Kenya. They achieve civilian oversight through, among others, the office of the Cabinet Secretary. The Inspector-General of Police has my firm instructions to bring anyone to book who is involved in matters of goonism,” Mr Murkomen said on Friday.
He said the Ol Kalou violence would be investigated despite criticism from government opponents, who accused the administration of complicity and dismissed the investigations as a public relations exercise.
Speaking at Tenwek Boys High School in Bomet County on Saturday, Mr Murkomen said the government had previously dealt with criminal gangs and would do so again.
“A few incidents that were witnessed cannot override the general tranquillity witnessed in the country. We have dealt with general insecurity and banditry in the country. Incidents of murder of children and women have been dealt with,” he said.
The Nation also sought a response from the National Police Service on why no arrests had been made if authorities had established that the hooded individuals were not police officers.
The service reiterated its earlier position that the Directorate of Criminal Investigations was investigating the identity of the masked men and their motive.
The incident also comes despite a High Court ruling issued on August 14, 2024, barring law enforcement officers from covering their faces with masks or balaclavas during operations, an order that critics say has frequently been ignored.
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[email protected] Additional reporting by Elvis Ondieki
