MP Accuses Police of Blocking Justice in Street Vendor's Killing

🚨 “Grave Injustice”: MP Peter Kihungi Accuses Police of Obstructing Justice in Killing of Street Vendor Boniface Kariuki

Nairobi, Kenya – A political firestorm is brewing after Kangema MP Peter Kihungi accused police of deliberately blocking the family of Boniface Kariuki — a street vendor shot dead during recent protests — from filing an official complaint about his killing.

Speaking on Monday outside Kenyatta National Hospital, where grieving relatives had gathered, the MP claimed that Kariuki’s parents had been shuffled between multiple police stations, repeatedly denied the opportunity to record a statement over the June 17 shooting.

“This is a grave injustice and a shameful failure of the institutions meant to protect Kenyans,” Kihungi told reporters. He emphasized that Boniface was simply selling masks, not engaging in any criminal activity. “He was an innocent civilian, and instead of protection, he was met with a bullet.”

The lawmaker condemned ongoing attempts by some government officials to justify the police shooting, calling it a blatant cover-up. “Cabinet Secretaries and everyone else must stop trying to convince Kenyans that there was provocation,” Kihungi said. “We will not accept a narrative that criminalizes poverty or erases the truth.”

The Kariuki family’s struggle to find justice has sparked widespread outrage online, with civil society groups calling for an independent investigation and disciplinary action against the officers involved.

As pressure mounts, the case is fast becoming a litmus test for the government’s commitment to police accountabilityand the protection of civilian rights — especially in the face of rising tensions around economic protests and law enforcement brutality.