What began as a routine government youth engagement at Kariokor Social Hall in Nairobi ended in a death mystery that has drawn in a senior state official, detectives and sharply conflicting accounts of what happened in a speeding government vehicle.
By the end of Tuesday evening, 29-year-old youth leader Cecil Ouma was dead, felled by a bullet reportedly fired by a bodyguard attached to Principal Secretary for Youth Affairs and Creative Economy Fikirini Jacobs.
The PS has been directed to appear before detectives at the Nairobi Regional Police Headquarters to record a statement and shed light on the circumstances that led to the shooting.
The Daily Nation attempted to reach out to Mr Fikirini, but he did not respond to calls and texts on his known cell phone number.
Last evening, the Daily Nation learnt that investigators had taken two firearms from bodyguards attached to the PS.
The investigation has widened, with detectives from Nairobi North Sub-County recording statements from at least seven people, including two bodyguards attached to the PS and a director from the Ministry of Youth Affairs.
The director, investigators say, was in the vehicle with Mr Fikirini at the time of the shooting and is considered a key witness.
While the motive behind the shooting remains unclear, the dead man’s elder brother Jeff Okoth told the Daily Nation that the incident stemmed from a disagreement over mobilisation cash.
Mr Okoth, who has already recorded a statement with investigators, recounted the final hours of his brother’s life.
According to Mr Okoth, Ouma received a call from a man who introduced himself as the personal assistant to the PS on Monday evening.
Cecil Ouma who was shot dead in Kariokor, Nairobi by the bodyguard of Youth Affairs Principal Secretary Fikirini Jacobs.
Photo credit: Pool
The caller, whose identity the Daily Nation is withholding for legal reasons, requested Ouma to mobilise youths to attend a meeting at Kariokor Social Hall the following morning.
It was a familiar assignment for Ouma, who had built a reputation as a community organiser after dropping out of university and dedicating himself to youth work in Mathare.
On Tuesday morning, the youths arrived at Kariokor Social Hall where they spent hours listening to speeches by Mr Fikirinii and several other invited guests.
Ironically, Ouma – who had mobilised the group and helped make the event a success – did not arrive at the venue until about 10 am.
“He had other engagements and had asked the youths to keep him updated on the proceedings,” Mr Okoth said.
Bang from inside the vehicle
As the day wore on, the number of youths at the venue grew steadily. By the time the meeting ended around 4 pm, about 100 young people had gathered outside the hall.
As was customary, Ouma, being the organiser and mobiliser, was called aside by the event organisers to receive “a token of appreciation” on behalf of the group.
Moments later, Ouma emerged from the car with a bundle of notes. He told the young people that the money was to be shared among them.
However, the mood changed when he said he had been given Sh10,000 to distribute to the group. The youths rejected the money and told him to return it to the organisers and demand more. That decision, according to the family, would prove fatal.
Mr Okoth said he later learnt that his brother returned to the vehicle and sat in the rear seat alongside the PS, his security detail and the personal assistant.
As the youths waited outside expecting Ouma to return with additional cash, they were stunned to see the vehicle speed towards Pangani. Believing their leader would still emerge with more money, several of them gave chase.
Youth Affairs Principal Secretary Fikirini Jacobs.
Photo credit: Dennis Onsongo | Nation Media Group
Around 4.50pm, near Park Road Primary School, some of them reportedly caught up with the vehicle and clung to it.
Then came a gunshot. The youths interviewed said they heard a bang from inside the vehicle, followed almost immediately by the opening of the door.
“My brother was thrown out of the vehicle and landed on the road, bleeding from a bullet wound,” Mr Okoth said, recounting witness statements shared with the family.
Good Samaritans took Ouma to a hospital on Park Road, but he was pronounced dead on arrival.
According to a report made at Pangani Police Station, the PS’s security detail said it had been attacked by rowdy youths while leaving Kariokor and was robbed of cash, mobile phones and other personal belongings.
When asked about the conflicting narratives, Nairobi County Police Commander Issa Mohamud said investigators were working to establish what really happened.
Mr Mohamud added that Mr Fikirini is among several individuals required to record statements with police.
“We have summoned him to record a statement. Everyone who was involved in the incident must record a statement,” the Nairobi police chief told the Daily Nation by phone, adding that investigations would unravel the truth of the matter.
