Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) detectives have intensified the probe into the abduction of Standard Group Associate Editor Alex Kiprotich.
On Saturday, September 5, forensic investigators visited Ekalakala in Kiangeni village near Masinga Dam, Machakos County.
Kiprotich reached the area after his abductors released him on September 2.
The detectives spent hours examining the site. They also retraced the movements around the area.
Investigators interviewed the family that sheltered Kiprotich after he reached the village, according to The Standard.
The exercise forms part of a wider effort to establish what happened during the journalist’s ordeal.
DCI examines Masinga scene
Investigators are looking for physical evidence that could help them reconstruct Kiprotich’s final movements.
The team examined the point where the journalist reached the area. Officers also studied the surrounding terrain.
Investigators hope the exercise will help them identify possible traces and establish the sequence of events.
However, the team arrived more than 72 hours after the reported abduction. Kiprotich’s colleagues and lawyer have questioned the delay.
Standard Group officials have also raised concerns about the effect of time and weather on possible evidence at the site.
Investigators also examine CCTV and vehicle evidence
The Masinga scene forms only part of the investigation.
Detectives are also examining evidence from the Gilgil area, where armed men intercepted the vehicle carrying Kiprotich on September 1.
Fresh reporting shows that investigators are reviewing CCTV footage, dashcam recordings and traffic information from the route.
On September 4, DCI forensic investigators examined the vehicle used by Kiprotich and his colleague Geoffrey Kamau.
The team collected fingerprints and other possible forensic evidence from the vehicle at the DCI regional headquarters in Nakuru.
Investigators will need to compare evidence from both locations.
They will also assess witness accounts and available recordings.
How Kiprotich reached Machakos
Armed, masked men intercepted Kiprotich’s vehicle along the Gilgil-Nakuru highway on the night of September 1.
The Standard Group later reported that the men took Kiprotich from the vehicle.
He spent several hours in captivity.
The journalist later reached a remote area near Masinga Dam in Machakos County.
A nearby family gave him shelter before Standard Group officials found him.
Reuters reported that Kiprotich had travelled more than 200 kilometers from the point of his abduction before reaching the Masinga area.
The circumstances surrounding that journey remain under investigation.
Case raises press freedom concerns
The incident has renewed concerns about the safety of journalists in Kenya.
Kiprotich had also reported a previous abduction attempt in Nakuru in June.
The Committee to Protect Journalists and other media organizations have called for a thorough investigation into the case.
The National Police Service has said its Anti-Abduction Unit is investigating the incident.
Police have also denied involvement in the abduction. Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen has rejected claims of a parallel police unit operating outside the formal command structure.
Key questions remain
The investigation must now establish who carried out the abduction.
Detectives also need to determine why the attackers targeted Kiprotich and how they travelled from Gilgil to the Masinga area.
Investigators will also examine the evidence collected from the vehicle, CCTV footage, witness accounts and the two locations.
The Masinga scene could provide important clues.
For now, however, the DCI has not announced arrests linked to the investigation.
County Guardian will continue tracking the case and report verified developments.
