MANDERA, Kenya, Monday, November 10, 2025 (EAT) – The National Police Service (NPS) and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) in Takaba, Mandera County, are facing serious allegations of obstructing justice in the defilement case of a six-year-old girl. The accusations, amplified by a prominent activist, claim that state officers are colluding with a council of elders to shield the suspect, who remains at large despite medical evidence confirming the assault.

The case gained national attention after journalist and activist Hanifa Adan published an online appeal on Sunday, November 9, 2025, accusing local authorities of failing to act. Adan alleged that the suspect, identified as Adan Mohammed Sheikh, is being protected by his family and the local council of elders, known as ‘Maslaha’. She claimed the elders are attempting to resolve the felony through an informal Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) process, effectively bypassing the Kenyan judicial system. “Takaba Police Station and the DPP office are a bunch of toothless dogs controlled by the Maslaha,” Adan stated, describing the victim's family as “stigmatized and terrorized.”

Medical Report Confirms Assault

Central to the case is a medical report from Takaba Sub-County Referral Hospital, dated October 27, 2025. The document, issued after the child’s mother filed a complaint, details clinical findings of bruises and swelling in the genital area, confirming physical evidence consistent with sexual abuse. Despite this official medical verification, the suspect, Adan Mohammed Sheikh, has not been arrested and his current whereabouts are unknown.

As of Monday morning, efforts to get a response from the Takaba Police Station were unsuccessful. Senior officers at the Mandera County Police Command stated they had not yet received official communication on the case from the sub-county team, and the ODPP's office in Mandera had not issued a comment.

Clash Between State Law and Tradition

This case highlights the persistent and troubling influence of traditional justice systems in adjudicating serious crimes, a practice explicitly outlawed in specific contexts. The Maslaha system, a traditional dispute resolution mechanism common in Northern Kenya, has long been criticized by human rights organizations for undermining formal justice, particularly in cases of gender-based violence. While Kenya's 2010 Constitution, under Article 159(2), encourages the use of ADR, it sets a clear condition that such mechanisms must not be “repugnant to justice and morality.”

Crucially, Kenya’s Sexual Offences Act (2006) provides stringent protections for victims of sexual violence and outlines clear punitive measures for offenders. Legal experts and activists emphasize that defilement is a felony that cannot be legally settled out of court through traditional arrangements like Maslaha. Such attempts not only violate the Act but also contravene the Children's Act, which prioritizes the best interests and protection of the child.

The Director of Public Prosecutions, Renson Ingonga, recently spoke out against the concealment of defilement cases at the community level, urging parents to report incidents promptly and testify against perpetrators. He noted that collusion between families and offenders often leads to cases collapsing before they reach the courts.

Urgent Calls for Intervention

The allegations from Mandera have sparked outrage, with child protection advocates demanding immediate intervention from national authorities to ensure the arrest of the suspect and the protection of the victim and her family. The case is seen as a critical test of the state's ability and willingness to enforce the rule of law uniformly, ensuring that justice for the most vulnerable is not subverted by local power structures or illegal traditional practices. Failure to act decisively, observers warn, would entrench impunity and further endanger children in regions where state judicial oversight is already perceived as weak.