A Nairobi woman who sells vegetables outside the Quickmart supermarket at OTC has shared her experience of what happened when a gang of goons stormed and looted the store on Wednesday, June 25, during the Gen-Z protests.
The woman, who has worked in the area for many years, said she was shocked and frightened as she watched a large group of young men running from Muthurwa after clashing with police.
The group quickly turned violent and began breaking into nearby shops. She said she recognized their faces and believed they were the kind of boys usually seen in Kayole during protests.
She explained that they warned her and her fellow vendor to move away. Realizing they were in danger, she immediately alerted her colleague and ran for safety.
She said they managed to get into the supermarket and went upstairs with the manager to try and hide. However, even at that point, they were not safe.
The goons followed them inside and began trying to break through the ceiling. She said they threatened them, shouting that if they didn’t come out, the ceiling would collapse on them.
At that moment, they decided to leave the upper floor and ran to hide in the supermarket toilets, hoping the attackers would not find them there.She also expressed her frustration that no police were present during the attack.
The gang acted freely and overwhelmed any form of security in place. She lost some of her stock in the chaos, including her grapes and pigeon peas, which were scattered all over. Despite all the panic and destruction, she said she did not see any police brutality or people dying, unlike what was being shared on social media.
On the next day, Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen and the Inspector General visited the supermarket to see the damage for themselves and speak with those affected.
Murkomen criticized the violence and destruction caused by the gang but also defended the police, saying they were doing their best under tough conditions.Quickmart later released a statement to reassure the public.
They made it clear that no one died or got hurt at the OTC or Ruiru branches, even though some rumors on social media had claimed otherwise.
The supermarket chain promised to continue serving the public and to recover from the incident.
The woman’s account gives a personal and emotional view of what really happened, far from the exaggerated stories seen online.
