The High Court in Kenya has sentenced to death a senior policeman who killed a suspect by severely beating him whilst he was in custody about six years ago.
Such a conviction is extremely rare, despite the fact that human rights organisations have documented hundreds of cases of brutality and killings carried out by Kenyan police. The officer, Nahashon Mutua, was in charge of a police station in the capital, Nairobi, when his victim, Martin Koome, was brought in following a domestic brawl.
The court heard that Mutua tortured the suspect and beat him repeatedly with a metal bar, leaving him bleeding badly with wounds on his head and fractured ribs. The officer had earlier tried to frame an inmate for the murder.
