Gachagua to Kanja: Kariobangi goons were under police command

By Newsflash Writer

Democracy for the Citizens Party (DCP) leader Rigathi Gachagua has launched a blistering attack on Inspector-General of Police Douglas Kanja, accusing him of allowing state-sponsored gangs to operate under direct police protection—including during a violent incident at a Kariobangi church on Sunday.

In letter released today, Monday, December 1, Gachagua says the attack at PCEA Kariobangi North on November 30, 2025, where women, children and worshippers were reportedly tear-gassed inside a church, was carried out by gangs “under your OCS.”

The letter places responsibility for the assault squarely on the police command, intensifying political pressure on the IG amid rising concerns over escalating political violence.

According to Gachagua, the gang that stormed the Kariobangi church service had initially been repelled by congregants but later returned “under police escort,” allegedly led by Kariobangi North OCS Syad Hassan. The DCP leader claims that the OCS personally ordered tear gas fired inside the church—including at Sunday school children—to create confusion and enable an attack on Opposition members.

“This gang was under the command of your OCS,” Gachagua writes. “He teargassed Sunday school kids and Christians with the sole intention of causing confusion and giving goons leeway to attack us in the church.”

Police complicity

Gachagua’s accusation forms the centrepiece of what he describes as a pattern of organised violence perpetrated by political gangs allegedly protected by the National Police Service. The letter is addressed directly to IG Kanja, whom he accuses of failing to rein in rogue officers and of surrendering police command to political interests linked to President William Ruto.

A section of PCEA Kariobangi North congregants hold their noses after police teargassed the church on Sunday, November 30, 2025. Photo/Handout

The DCP leader claims that gangs have effectively become “a fully-fledged unit under the National Police Service,” operating with officers in uniform and plain clothes.

He warns that Kenya is “sliding into statelessness” due to what he terms state-sponsored political goonism.

Gachagua also questions President Ruto’s recent directive ordering the arrest of political goons, arguing that the real issue is police collaboration with gangs. He challenges the IG to declare publicly that the police will no longer provide logistical, intelligence or tactical support to violent groups. According to him, withdrawing such support would allow “peace-loving Kenyans” to apprehend violent individuals without fear of reprisals or police interference.

Trail of attacks across the country

The Kariobangi incident is one of ten cases Gachagua lists as evidence of a pattern of coordinated attacks targeting him, DCP officials and Opposition supporters.

Among the incidents cited are attacks at:

A funeral service in Limuru on November 28, 2024.
A political meeting in Shamata, Nyandarua County on December 28, 2024, where an inspector allegedly aided gangs in tear-gassing his supporters.
A prayer rally at Kamukunji Grounds in Nyeri on January 18, 2025.
St. Peter’s ACK Cathedral in Nyeri on March 23, 2025.
Naivasha Town on March 29, 2025, under alleged police escort.
PCEA Kasarani East Parish in Mwiki on April 6, 2025.
Kinyona, Murang’a County on July 27, 2025, where Senator John Methu and others were reportedly targeted.
Narok Town and Mbeere North during November 2025 elections.
Kariobangi North on November 30, 2025, involving women and children in a church.

Gachagua claims a police investigation file on the Mwiki church attack was completed but suppressed because an MCA close to the President was implicated.

Demands action

In a broader critique, Gachagua accuses the Ministry of Interior and the National Police Service of institutionalising political goonism. He argues that under Interior CS Kipchumba Murkomen and IG Kanja, gangs have operated with police protection and impunity.

The DCP leader further questions whether the Kenya Police Service’s deployment to Haiti was partly intended to “benchmark” gang-based suppression of dissent.

He ends the letter by demanding that the government publicly disband what he calls the “101 killer squad,” which he alleges has abducted and killed Gen Z protesters.

As the National Police Service is yet to issue an official response, the allegations—especially the claim that the Kariobangi attackers were under the command of a serving OCS—have thrust IG Kanja and his leadership into the centre of a widening storm over political violence, accountability and the role of the police in Kenya’s democratic space.