- Citizen TV reporter Ode Francis says he feared for his life after police arrested him while covering protests against rising fuel prices in Nairobi
- Ode recalled being detained at Central Police Station in the same cell where blogger Albert Ojwang died in custody in June 2025
- The Crime Journalists Association of Kenya condemned Ode’s arrest and called for an independent investigation into his alleged assault
Harry Ivan Mboto is a Current Affairs and Politics Editor at TUKO.co.ke, covering crime and court news. Mboto has five years of journalism experience and joined TUKO.co.ke in 2024
Citizen TV crime reporter Francis Ode has recounted the frightening moments he was arrested while covering protests in Nairobi, revealing that he was detained in the same Central Police Station cell where blogger Albert Ojwang died in police custody.
Source: UGC
Speaking outside the station shortly after his release on Tuesday, October 20, Ode said his experience in the cell brought back memories of the case he had previously reported on, leaving him worried about his own safety.
“I was afraid because it was the same cell from which I had reported Albert Ojwang’s death. While inside, I asked myself many questions. I wondered whether, if anything happened to me as a journalist, it would follow the same script as Ojwang’s case, which I had reported”,” he said.
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Ojwang died in police custody in June 2025 after being arrested in Homa Bay and transferred to Nairobi. The National Police Service initially claimed that he had hit his head against a cell wall before being rushed to Mbagathi Hospital. However, a post-mortem examination found injuries consistent with assault, while the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) later confirmed that he died inside the Central Police Station cells.
How was Ode Francis arrested?
Ode said he had been assigned to cover demonstrations in Nairobi's Central Business District over rising fuel prices. He explained that he had been gathering information at the protest when, about five minutes later, he noticed activists beginning to flee.
According to the reporter, a uniformed police officer approached him and instructed other officers not in uniform to arrest him.
“I was assigned to cover the protest, and we began gathering news. About five minutes later, I saw activists start running. Then, a uniformed police officer approached me and instructed the other officers, ‘Arrest this one,’” Ode recounted.
He said he questioned the arrest, pointing out that he was a journalist carrying out his professional duties. He alleged that individuals dressed in plain clothes then approached him, failed to identify themselves and began manhandling him.
Ode said he raised his voice because he feared for his safety as the situation escalated. He was roughed up alongside protesters on Kimathi Street before being taken to Central Police Station, where he was briefly detained.
The arrest drew condemnation from the Crime Journalists Association of Kenya, which called for an independent investigation into the incident and stressed that journalists should be able to cover public events without facing arrest or physical harm.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
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