Pain has turned into deep anger for a family in Nanyuki after losing their daughter, Julie Njoki, following what they describe as a brutal encounter with the police.
Julie was arrested on Monday, July 7, during the Saba Saba protests. Instead of being safely released or fairly processed like any other Kenyan citizen, she was reportedly tortured while in police custody.
That arrest, done in the name of maintaining law and order, ended with a young woman’s life being stolen in the most horrific way.
Julie was taken to Nanyuki Police Station. Her family says she was in perfect health when police picked her up. But within hours, everything changed. Her aunt painfully recalled how Julie went from being lively and strong to lying unconscious and unable to speak.
“She was arrested in a town I believed was safe. She was taken to court the next day, but that night, she was beaten until she couldn’t speak.
The people meant to protect her are the same ones who took her life,” her aunt wrote. That statement shows a deep betrayal by a police force that has long lost public trust.
A medical report later confirmed blunt force injuries to the head injuries that cannot be brushed off as minor or accidental.
These were injuries caused by someone who meant to harm her. Someone in uniform, someone paid by taxpayers.
The family says police delayed getting her medical help, and by the time she was finally taken to hospital, she was already dying. In other words, the police not only beat her senseless but also watched her slip into death without care or urgency.
“This was a young life, full of hope. Now we’re planning a funeral instead of a future,” a heartbroken family member said. Julie’s story mirrors that of Albert Ojwang, a teacher and blogger who also died in police custody weeks ago.
It is becoming painfully clear that these are not isolated incidents. They are part of a wider culture of unchecked brutality, especially against young protestors whose only ‘crime’ is demanding change.
Kenyans are now speaking louder than ever. Online and in the streets, there are calls for real justice and an end to the silence that usually follows police killings.
The police must be held accountable. They are not above the law. These uniforms should not be shields for murderers.
Julie Njoki’s death must not be buried under excuses or false investigations. The officers responsible must be named, arrested, and prosecuted.
The country must rise up and ask one simple but heavy question, how many more young Kenyans have to die before something changes?
The badge should not protect killers. Julie deserves justice. Her family deserves answers.
And the Kenyan people deserve a police force that does its job without becoming the enemy.
