'We don’t have him': IG Kanja denies police custody of missing Tanzanian
IG Douglas Kanja before Milimani High Court to explain the whereabouts of a Tanzanian national Mwaipaya Twaha, who was allegedly abducted on October 25, 2026.
Photo credit: Richard Munguti | Nation
Correspondent
Nation Media Group
Tanzanian national Twaha Mwaipaya, who was allegedly abducted on October 25, 2026, is not in the custody of Kenyan police, Inspector-General of Police Douglas Kanja told the High Court on Monday.
Appearing before Justice Alexander Muteti to explain Mwaipaya's whereabouts, Mr Kanja said the police had neither arrested nor detained him at any police station in the country.
“In the first place I do not know whether Mwaipaya was in Kenya. We do not have him in our custody,” Mr Kanja told the judge.
Tanzanian activist and Chadema youth organiser Twaha Salim Mwaipaya.
Photo credit: Pool
The court heard that Mwaipaya had been seeking asylum in Kenya. However, the police boss and his lawyers denied knowledge of his presence in the country or his alleged extradition to Tanzania.
“Are you aware he was arrested by Police at Kamulu within Nairobi and removed from the country to Tanzania?” the judge asked.
In response, Mr Kanja said he had no information linking the police to the alleged arrest and extradition of the Tanzanian national.
He told the court that Mwaipaya's relatives had reported him missing at Kamulu Police Station, Nairobi County adding that investigations were underway to establish his whereabouts.
Mr Kanja described investigations into abductions as complex, requiring patience, but maintained that the police were treating the matter seriously.
Mwaipaya was allegedly arrested on October 25, 2026, while in the company of another person who has since recorded a statement with the police.
The IG also denied allegations that police officers were being used in the cross-border abductions that have rocked the country in recent years.
“Abduction is a criminal activity which the police treat with a lot of seriousness and that those brought to book face the full force of the law,” Mr Kanja told the court.
Responding to questions from defence lawyer Martha Karua, Mr Kanja said he had discussed the growing cases of abductions with relevant security agencies during National Security Council meetings.
Senior Counsel Martha Karua cross-examining IGP Douglas Kanja at the Milimani High court on November 3, 2026, as to the whereabouts of a Tanzanian fugitive Twaha Mwaipaya.
Photo credit: Richard Munguti | Nation
He, however, declined to divulge details of the discussions, saying he “could not discuss security matters in public as that would give criminals an idea of the operations of the security apparatus.”
Mr Kanja added that he had consulted various government agencies, including the Immigration Department, but had received no positive report confirming that Mwaipaya had been removed from Kenya.
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