Court orders release of MP Kaguchia on KSh100,000 cash bail amid hate speech probe
Mukurwe-ini MP John Kaguchia
Judge grants urgent orders as Mukurwe-ini legislator accuses government allies of orchestrating his arrest, while Kamukunji police delay compliance
By James Mwangi
The High Court has ordered the release of Mukurwe-ini MP John Kaguchia from police custody on a cash bail of KSh100,000, hours after he was arrested over remarks he made at a weekend political rally in Nyeri.
In orders issued at the Kiambu High Court yesterday, Lady Justice Njoki Mwangi directed that the legislator be released forthwith upon depositing the cash bail, after certifying his application urgent and granting interim relief pending the hearing of the case.
The judge, who heard the matter for directions on a notice of motion filed under a certificate of urgency, directed Kaguchia to serve the application on the respondents, who include the Inspector General of Police and the Director of Public Prosecutions. The respondents were given 14 days to file and serve their responses, with the MP granted a further 14 days to file a supplementary affidavit if necessary. The substantive application has been set down for a virtual hearing on September 16.
Kaguchia was arrested by detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations yesterday morning, after spending the night at the Royal Media Services offices in Nairobi, where he had taken refuge from Sunday evening. He said a contingent of police officers had surrounded the studios and mounted roadblocks in what he described as an attempt to intimidate him before his eventual arrest.
Speaking to Citizen TV shortly before he was taken into custody, Kaguchia said he was being investigated over comments he made at a political rally in Kieni, Nyeri County, on Saturday, which he maintained had been distorted to fit a particular narrative. “I have not received any summons, only social media posts,” he told the broadcaster, adding that he had no objection to appearing before the National Cohesion and Integration Commission, which he said held the proper mandate over such matters. He accused government digital strategist Dennis Itumbi and a number of Mt Kenya legislators of amplifying claims against him.
At the Kieni rally, Kaguchia is reported to have warned Mt Kenya residents of consequences should they back President William Ruto in the 2027 General Election, telling the crowd in Kikuyu that those who supported the President would be “tracked to their homes.” It is these remarks that authorities are now investigating as potential hate speech.
Regional DCI commander Daniel Kandie was among the officers who carried out the arrest. The MP was initially believed to be headed to the regional DCI offices at Milimani, Nairobi, but was later moved to DCI headquarters along Kiambu Road for processing, before being held at Kamukunji Police Station pending the court’s determination.
It is at Kamukunji that the case took an unexpected turn. Despite the High Court order for Kaguchia’s immediate release upon payment of the KSh100,000 bail, the station’s Officer Commanding Station did not act on the order for several hours, prompting sharp criticism from the MP’s allies. Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, in a statement issued after the ruling, said the OCS was “being misled by his seniors” into disregarding a court order that had, by his account, already been served on the station.
“My advice to the OCS is to obey the court order, as he will be held personally liable for contempt of court,” Gachagua said, warning that senior officers would not shield the station commander should he later face contempt proceedings. He drew a comparison to the Central Police Station OCS, who remains in remand on murder charges over the death in custody of the late Albert Ojwang, arguing that junior officers who follow unlawful instructions ultimately bear the legal consequences alone.
Gachagua went further, framing the arrest within a broader pattern he attributed to the current administration. “The use of the criminal justice system to manage politics is synonymous with outgoing, cowardly regimes,” he said, adding that selective application of the law was counterproductive. He recalled that President Ruto, while serving as Deputy President under the previous administration, had once criticised similar tactics used against him and his allies. “As President, he is doing exactly what he said at the time was foolish,” Gachagua said, questioning what changes in leaders’ thinking once they assume the presidency.
He said the party’s legal team was working to secure Kaguchia’s release on bond ahead of his arraignment, which he indicated would take place today.
Neither the National Police Service nor the Kamukunji OCS had issued a public response by the time of publication regarding the delay in effecting the court order. The Directorate of Criminal Investigations has also not commented on the specifics of the probe into Kaguchia’s rally remarks, nor on whether formal charges will be preferred against him.
The case adds to a string of recent confrontations between opposition-aligned Mt Kenya legislators and law enforcement, amid heightened political tension ahead of the 2027 General Election. Kaguchia’s arrest, and the manner of his brief detention beyond the terms of a court order, is likely to feature prominently when the matter returns to the High Court in September, with his legal team expected to raise the delay as part of a broader argument over the conduct of his arrest and custody.
For now, Kaguchia remains out on cash bail, with the substantive hearing on the legality of his arrest and the hate speech allegations against him set for September 16.
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