Four Senior Police Commanders Seek to Quash Charges in Baby Pendo Killing Case

Four senior police commanders have filed an application in the High Court to quash charges linked to the killing of Baby Samantha Pendo and the deaths of dozens of civilians during the 2017 post-election unrest in Kisumu.

The officers, identified as John Chengo Masha, Linah Kogey, Cyprine Robi Wankio, and James Rono, served as commanders of police platoons deployed in Kisumu amid the violent protests that followed the announcement of the presidential election results.

They face accusations of murder as a crime against humanity, rape, and other acts constituting crimes against humanity. The charges stem from the doctrine of command responsibility, which holds them accountable for failing in their supervisory roles, leading to the deaths of Baby Samantha Pendo, who was six months old at the time, and 34 other victims, as well as alleged widespread sexual violence and torture during police operations to disperse demonstrators.

The tragic incident involving Baby Pendo occurred in 2017 in Kisumu, where excessive force by security personnel during the unrest resulted in numerous civilian casualties and injuries.

In their application dated March 9, 2026, the commanders argue that the charges are legally defective. They describe the charges as vague, duplicative, and failing to disclose any recognizable offense under Kenyan law. They contend that the prosecution has not presented sufficient evidence directly linking them to the alleged offenses.

Their lawyers, Elias Ouma and Eric Gumbo, assert that the charges do not specify with precision the factual basis for liability under command responsibility. They claim the prosecution treats command responsibility as a standalone crime rather than tying it to specific acts or omissions by each officer.

The officers further argue that the lack of detailed evidence disclosure violates their constitutional rights to a fair trial, equality, human dignity, freedom and security, and administrative justice, as protected under various articles of the Kenyan Constitution. They also reference provisions of the International Crimes Act and the Criminal Procedure Code.

The prosecution, led by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, has allegedly failed to comply with prior High Court orders requiring full disclosure of evidence intended for use against each accused person.

The commanders, who are currently out on cash bail of one million shillings each, seek to have the amended charges dated May 2, 2025, quashed entirely. They also request the suspension of the ongoing trial until the High Court determines their application.

This development follows earlier proceedings at the Milimani Law Court, where the officers appeared on May 5, 2025. The case originally involved 12 police officers, but charges against eight were dropped, leaving these four to face trial.

The High Court has directed the prosecution to provide full evidence disclosure within 30 days, setting a deadline of April 12, 2026. Failure to comply would allow the court to proceed with hearing the application to suspend the trial.

The case represents a significant effort to address accountability for alleged police excesses during the 2017 post-election violence in Kisumu, which drew widespread condemnation for excessive use of force against civilians.