Acting Inspector-General of Police Gilbert Masengeli arrives at Gigiri Police Station in Nairobi where 13 suspects, including murder suspect Collins Jumaisi Khalusha (right), escaped from police custody.
Closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage obtained from premises near Gigiri Police Station shows a vehicle driving out at dawn on August 20 when 13 suspects, including a suspected serial killer, escaped.
The mystery vehicle is a black van with features of a model that is typically a seven-seater, investigators who have reviewed the CCTV footage said.
It is captured driving out of the station at around 3.50 am, turning right onto the main road leading to the United States Embassy and disappearing towards Runda.
However, the car’s number plates are not visible because of the positioning of the cameras, detectives familiar with the investigations told the Nation on Wednesday.
Detectives from Nairobi area are working to uncover details of the vehicle, which could help to track down the driver who would have information about the events of the night.
Acting Inspector General of Police Gilbert Masengeli (center) speaks journalists at Gigiri Police Station in Nairobi on August 20, 2024.
Collins Jumaisi Khalusha, the prime suspect in the Kware murders, as well as 12 Eritreans who were arrested for being in the country illegally, escaped from the police station cells in a crime police chiefs have termed an inside job.
Some officers, including those on duty on the night of the escape, have been charged and others interdicted.
The area around the police station has several buildings, including an embassy, which are mounted with CCTV cameras. The station also borders the Diplomatic Police Unit.
The footage showing the vehicle corroborates a statement by one of the police officers. The junior officer, who is among five that were on duty on the night of the escape, said he heard the sound of a vehicle outside the main office block sometime after 3am.
Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) detectives have zeroed in on the mystery vehicle that they believe was used to ferry the suspects to freedom.
Read: Gigiri jailbreak: Detectives probe call records, money transactions of detained police officers
On Wednesday, a senior official familiar with the investigations told the Nation that none of the images forwarded to the DCI forensic examination team have provided clear details. “There is not much evidence from the footage we have so far,” said the official.
This comes as acting Inspector-General of Police Gilbert Masengeli effected major staffing changes at the police station. Only four junior police officers survived the transfers. Most of the officers have been transferred to police stations outside Nairobi.
Separately, the DCI has launched a countrywide manhunt for Jumaisi. Different teams, including the Operation Support Unit, have been tasked to track down the suspect who escaped days before he was due back in court for his trial.
On Wednesday, one of the teams tracking Jumaisi visited his rural home in Western Kenya. The investigators, however, did not find any information to suggest he had been there. Relatives who were at the home told the investigators that Jumaisi had cut communication with the family since his arrest.
A preliminary report handed over to police chiefs at Jogoo House and copied to Vigilance House, police headquarters, revealed that there was collusion between junior officers and their bosses to aid the escape by the suspects.
On the day of the escape, there were 17 prisoners in police cells. These were the 12 foreigners, four suspects who had been arrested for being drunk and disorderly and Jumaisi who had been at Gigiri for a month. That day, two police officers were stationed at the report office and another two were deployed to guard the police station.
A senior police officer from Spring Valley police station was tasked to supervise operations at the police station at night under the Westland’s sub-county police command.
The police stations that this senior officer was supposed to supervise include Runda police station, Gigiri police station, Spring Valley police station and Parklands police station. This officer, also known as a duty officer, is required to visit all these police stations and check on the night operations.
From midnight, the senior officer is supposed to go around the stations and conduct a routine check on all suspects in the cells.
That night, the duty officer arrived at the Gigiri station shortly after midnight and demanded to know from the officer at the report office the number of suspects in the cells. The senior officer did not go into the cells to carry out a physical count and only relied on the information supplied by the officer.
Around 3 am, the Nairobi area control room called the Gigiri Police Station boss for a routine check. Referred to as the morning call-up, the controller at police headquarters calls out all station commanders and inquires if there are any major incidents in their areas.
Up to that time, according to statements by the officers, no one knew of the suspects' escape. It was not until 5.30 am when the canteen staff who serve breakfast established that only four suspects were in the cells.
