Video Emerges Of Police Officer Shooting Suspected Phone Snatchers At Point Blank

• Three suspected phone snatchers were gunned down by police officers along Lusaka Road in Nairobi on May 22
• Makadara sub-county police chief Judy Kola reported the suspects' interception while robbing commuters, accelerating the police search
• A video surfaced online, raising concerns about the incident's handling and prompting calls for police accountability
• In the video, an alleged police officer is seen at the scene as shots are heard, prompting concerns of potential extrajudicial killings

Didacus Malowa, a journalist at TUKO.co.ke, brings over three years of experience covering politics and current affairs in Kenya.

Nairobi - The National Police Service has found itself under criticism following the death of three suspected robbers.

On Wednesday, May 22, it was reported that three suspected phone snatchers had been gunned down by police officers along Lusaka Road in Nairobi.

Makadara sub-county police chief Judy Kola reported that the suspects were intercepted by officers while in the act of robbing commuters, including those heading to work in the Industrial Area.

She stated that the police had to accelerate their search for the suspected thieves after they allegedly stole KSh 12,000 and a gold chain from an Indian national before disappearing into the Mukuru slums on Monday, May 20.

Was Nairobi shooting a case of extrajudicial killing?

However, the police have been put to task to explain how the suspected thugs were gunned down after a video surfaced online.

In the 30-second clip, a young man can be heard saying the event was exclusive, as an alleged police officer is seen at the scene.

The officer walks over each of the suspects lying next to a boda boda before four shots rent the air.

A lady's voice in the car insists that they should drive ahead and stop recording, but the man insists as they come to a junction where members of the public stand watching.

The video stops as the lady warns the unidentified man that he's risking by recording the incident.

3 suspects in theft of KSh 3.9m in Eastleigh found dead

Elsewhere, three suspects in the robbery witnessed in Nairobi's Eastleigh area were reported dead days after their arrest in Mombasa.

Armed, the trio attacked businessman Adan Mohamed, whom they shot in the neck on March 30.

NTV Kenya reported that the bodies of Fredrick and the woman were found in Juja and Lari in Kiambu county, respectively, with Jayline's in an unknown location.

According to a report from the morgue, the suspects drowned.

Proofreading by Mercy Nyambura Guthua, journalist and copy editor at TUKO.co.ke