Police officer who died by suicide at DCI headquarters identified

A 59-year-old police corporal named Linus Muia Mutunga has been identified as the officer who died by suicide at the DCI headquarters in Nairobi on Wednesday, October 11, 2023.

Mutunga was a driver attached to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations operations department at the time of the incident. He had served for 40 years and was due to retire at the end of this year.

His colleagues said he was a dedicated officer and suspect that he may not have been ready for retirement. They also said that he locked himself in his car and shot himself in the chest.

The motive of the suicide is yet to be known.

DCI boss Mohamed Amin and chief government pathologist Dr Johansen Oduor visited the scene and established that Mutunga had shot himself in the chest near the heart. They called his family for an autopsy and other procedures.

This is the latest in a series of suicides by police officers in Kenya. Last week, a senior officer died by suicide in his house in the Utawala area of Nairobi.

Police authorities have launched counseling services and established a unit to attend to the demanding situation of police officers as part of efforts to address the trend.