Police obtained user information from the Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) to investigate an X (formerly Twitter) account that had allegedly published defamatory content about Deputy Inspector General Eliud Lagat. This was revealed by Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja during a session with the Senate.
Kanja explained that officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) launched the inquiry after a post from the account named Pixelpioneer accused DIG Lagat of manipulating police operations for personal gain. The post read: “Mr. Eliud Lagat had strategically placed his most trusted officers in charge of DCI desks and traffic shifts to control both revenue streams and intelligence flow.”
According to Kanja, the investigators first contacted the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) to find out whether Lagat was under any fraud investigations. Concurrently, on June 4, they wrote to the Communications Authority requesting registration details and access to all posts related to the Pixelpioneer account.
CA responded on the same day, confirming the account was active with 13,400 followers. In addition to Pixelpioneer, police also investigated another X account, Kelvinmwicheles, which had ties to a man identified as Kelvin Moinde.
Kanja told Senators that CA provided registration data and post histories linked to the accounts. The information helped investigators track down Moinde, who was arrested in Migori County. He was later transferred to DCI headquarters, where he gave a statement and named four others he claimed were involved. Among those he mentioned was Albert Ojwang, who later died in police custody. The others were Dorcas Mawia, Douglas Marigiri, and Peter Mbugua.
On June 7, police officers traveled to Homa Bay, arrested Ojwang, and transferred him to Central Police Station in Nairobi. Records show he arrived at 9:17 PM. His death has since raised serious questions, with public attention shifting toward the handling of his case and the methods used by law enforcement in tracking and detaining suspects tied to online content.
By Yockshard Enyendi