KDF officer, civilian convicted of gang raping woman at police station

Nairobi Central Police Station is fast becoming a symbol of unchecked impunity within the country’s security apparatus. 

Just weeks after public protests erupted over the unexplained death of a blogger in police custody at Nairobi Central Police Station, the same facility is once again in the spotlight.

This time, for a brutal gang rape committed by uniformed officers and their accomplices.

In a judgment delivered on Tuesday, High Court Judge Alexander Muteti sentenced a Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) officer to 20 years in prison for his role in the 2018 gang rape of a refugee woman inside the police station, an incident that has reignited fresh concerns about impunity within country’s security agencies.

Arektum Kibet Benjamin, a KDF officer at the time of the incident, was convicted alongside a civilian, Julius Juma, for the August 2018 attack on the victim, a Congolese national and registered refugee in Kenya, identified in court only as ID.

In his decision, Muteti described the incident as a “regrettable abuse of state authority” and ruled that the earlier sentence of seven years issued by the trial court was illegal and insufficient under Kenyan law.

"In the end the appeal on conviction is dismissed and the appeal on sentence succeeds to the extent that the illegal sentence of seven years imprisonment is set aside and substituted therefore with a prison term of 20 years,' Justice Muteti ordered.

While imposing the sentence, the judge said that it's very unbelievable that the offence took place inside a police facility and was committed by individuals entrusted with public safety.

"The sentence is informed by the fact that the appellant (Kibet) was an officer entrusted with the security of this country as a Kenya Defense Forces officer, he decided to abuse his position and committed an offence within the police lines a place where all go to seek help against criminals thus defiling the police station," the judge added.   

"Our security personnel, once they become part of the criminal gangs in society, all those tasked with law enforcement, including the courts, must rise up and respond firmly to deter others from such conduct. I say no more." 

Justice Muteti imposed the harsh sentence on the KDF officer as a stern warning to rogue members of the disciplined forces who abuse their power.  

“This case stands as a warning to any state officer who dares to misuse their power,” Justice Muteti said.

“Justice must not only be done but must be seen to be done.”

According to evidence adduced in court by the DPP, on August 14, 2028, the victim, a mother of two and registered refugee, had gone to Eastleigh to purchase clothes for resale.

After concluding her shopping, she made her way to Kencom Stage in the Nairobi Central Business District around 7:00 p.m., intending to board a matatu back home.

It was there, as she stood among other commuters, that the course of her day took a sudden and terrifying turn.

The woman testified in court that she was accosted by four men, two of whom were dressed in full police uniform, while the other two wore civilian clothing.

Among them, she identified one man, whom she later recognised as the KDF officer Kibet, wearing a maroon suit.

The four men demanded to know her identity and insisted that she open the bag she was carrying.

Complying with their demands, the lady produced her refugee identification document, which she acknowledged had expired on March 26 2017. 

She showed them the contents of her bag, assuming that would be the end of the encounter.

However, events quickly escalated. Without explanation, she was forcibly ushered into a small white car, which she described as unmarked and unrecognisable.

The men drove her to the Nairobi Central Police Station, a place she had never been to before, where she was locked in a wooden room and held overnight.

Once there, she was led into what she described as a small wooden room, which she initially assumed was a holding cell.

Inside, she was then told to remain in the room and await "the boss" who, she was told, would come to "deal with her."

“They told me to wait in a wooden room. They took my Sh10,000 and said their boss would deal with me,” she testified in court.

During that time, she also testified how she was sexually assaulted multiple times by different men, including the two accused.

Approximately 20 minutes later, the two men dressed in police uniform returned.

They demanded that she removes her clothes but she refused.

One of the officers slapped her across the face, and they brandished a firearm, threatening her with death if she did not comply.

Terrified and fearing for her life, the woman testified that she eventually removed her clothes under duress. 

It was then, she stated, that the officers raped her in turns, threatening to kill her if she dared to reveal the ordeal to anyone.

"They raped me and said, ‘If you speak, we’ll kill you," the woman informed the court.

“I was afraid because no one knew where I was, and they told me I could be deported.”

Later that night, two more men in civilian clothes, among them Kibet and his co-accused Juma entered the same room.

“Accused 1 [Julius Juma] started. He used a condom. Then Accused 2 [Kibet] followed,” she told the court. 

She also described how Kibet returned to the room drunk the following morning, raped her again, and then fell asleep next to her.

It was during that moment, when Kibet and Juma dozed off beside her, that she seized the chance to escape. 

She took photographs of Kibet using his mobile phone, including a selfie of herself, Kibet, and Juma, all on the same bed, which later became key evidence in the case.

 “I sent the photos to my neighbors. I thought I would die, so I wanted people to know who did this,” she said.

Traumatised, penniless, and physically injured, the woman managed to flee.

She passed her house and went straight to a hospital, where she was refused medication due to lack of payment. 

A neighbor stepped in to help. Later, she reported the incident to the Refugee Affairs Secretariat, which involved the UNHCR and HIAS Kenya to ensure her safety and medical attention.

The prosecution presented medical evidence, including a P3 form and PRC form, confirming the presence of spermatozoa in the complainant’s vaginal swab. 

Photographs taken by the victim, including a selfie showing her, the accused, and the co-accused in the same bed, were admitted as exhibits.

While direct DNA evidence did not link Kibet to the act, the court found that his co-accused Juma’s DNA matched semen stains collected from the bedding at the police station.

“The victim’s evidence was consistent and truthful,” Justice Muteti said.

“The photographs taken by the complainant, along with witness and medical testimony, left no room for reasonable doubt.”

In his defence Kibet claimed he was on duty at Gilgil Barracks on the day of the incident, and called a witness to present a handwritten duty roster. 

However, the court rejected Kibet’s alibi defense, noting that the document lacked any official stamp or verification and appeared to be fabricated.

His witness presented a handwritten “parade state” record with no official stamp or letterhead, which the judge dismissed as unreliable.

“The appellant failed to explain how his photo ended up in the complainant’s possession. That was a matter within his special knowledge,” the judge observed.

Kibet’s appeal was dismissed, and the High Court substituted the 7-year sentence with a 20-year prison term, effective from April 15, 2021, the date he was remanded.

Initially, in 2021, both Kibet and Juma were convicted and sentenced to just 7 years in prison.

But in May 2025,the prosecution, led by Principal Prosecution Counsel Peris  Ogega, filed a notice of enhancement of sentence in May 2025, arguing that the initial sentence of seven years handed by the trial court was contrary to Section 10 of the Sexual Offences Act, which prescribes a minimum of 15 years for gang rape.

Justice Muteti agreed with the DPP had set aside the earlier sentence imposed on the officer Kibet of seven years  and substituted with a 20-year jail term, noting the seriousness of the offence 

Kibet’s new sentence of 20 years imprisonment is effective from April 15, 2021, when he was first committed to prison.