A petition has been filed at the Milimani Law Courts seeking orders compelling the Inspector General of Police and the Director of Criminal Investigations (DCI) to account for the whereabouts of activist Bonface Mulinge Muteti, who is reported to have gone missing after his alleged arrest during protests.
The petition, filed by Francis Awino, seeks the court’s intervention to establish where Muteti is being held and, if he is in custody, compel the authorities to produce him before the court.
Awino has filed the application under the constitutional provisions protecting personal liberty and the right to habeas corpus, asking the court to urgently inquire into Muteti’s whereabouts and the legal basis, if any, for his detention.
According to the petition, Muteti was allegedly arrested on or about September 21, 2026, in Nairobi during a public demonstration concerning the continued detention of Ugandan opposition leader Kizza Besigye.
The petitioner states that Muteti informed people within his circle that he had been arrested shortly before communication with him ceased. His phone subsequently became unreachable, and attempts to contact him have allegedly been unsuccessful.
The petition further states that a written notification of the intended demonstration had been delivered to the Kenya Police Service on September 16, setting out the proposed date, route and expected attendance.
Awino also cites a charge sheet dated September 22 relating to the arrest and processing of other activists in connection with events along Mama Ngina Street in Nairobi. However, Muteti is not listed among those named in the charge sheet, according to the petition.
A report concerning Muteti’s disappearance was subsequently made to the police on September 23 under OB No. 46, the petitioner says.
The application names the Inspector General of Police and the DCI as respondents and asks them to appear before the court, either personally or through authorised representatives, with any warrant, detention order, committal warrant or other document relied upon to justify Muteti’s arrest or continued detention.
The petitioner is also seeking orders requiring the respondents to disclose Muteti’s current whereabouts and produce records relating to his arrest, custody, transfer, release or processing, including relevant Occurrence Book entries, station diary entries, custody records and detainee registers.
Awino argues that the application does not seek to interfere with any lawful investigation or prosecution, but is intended to establish whether Muteti is in police, investigative, remand or any other form of custody and, if so, the legal basis for his detention.
The application asks the court to certify the matter as urgent and issue directions in the nature of habeas corpus, including an order requiring Muteti to be produced before the court within 24 hours of service or within such shorter period as the court may direct.
The circumstances surrounding Muteti’s alleged disappearance and his present whereabouts remain subject to determination by the court.
