Sergeant Ahmed Rashid shot to the limelight in March 2017 when he was captured in a viral clip shooting dead two people in broad daylight.
The officer based at Pangani Police Station killed Jamal Mohamed and Mohamed Dhair Kheri over suspicion of engaging in crime activities.
The two were killed despite being unharmed and surrendering, sparking wild reactions from human rights activists leading to a five-year investigation by Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA).
Here is what WoK has gathered about the cop who is loved and loathed in almost equal measure.
’Pangani Six’
By the time Rashid, who led an informal group of police officers dubbed Pangani Six, killed the two suspected criminals, he had been accused of other extrajudicial killings in the slums.
The infamous police group played the role of ending criminal activities in informal settlement in Eastleigh, Mathare and parts Huruma.
For this matter, Rashid is loved and hated in equal measure; many have branded him a hero while others have consider him a rogue police officer.
In an interview with BBC Africa in 2018, Rashid maintained that his role is solely flushing out criminals out of their hideouts and bringing back sanity.
“We have to get them, whether alive or dead. We can’t compromise about it,” he said.
Despite the shooting incident in 2017 igniting a public uproar, Rashid didn’t stop there as he is said, according to multiple reports, to have gunned down a few other criminals.
Life threatening missions
Rashid has also had life threatening moments in the line of duty, in September 2019, he suffered minor injuries while pursuing suspected gang members along Juja Road.
“The officer was hit with a metal road and fell on the road sustaining injuries on the right hand palm, left elbow and on the right knee,” a police report on the incident indicated.
In a similar incident last year, Rashid escaped death in a shootout, and although the criminals were gunned down, he sustained injuries after he was shot on the thumb.
He was rushed to the hospital, treated and discharged.
Controversial moments
Elsewhere, Rashid has brushed shoulders with a few traders in Eastleigh who accused him of harassment and siding with their business rivals.
A trader identified as Halima Abdullahi accused the officer of picking sides noting that her business rival used Rashid to frustrate her efforts to seek justice.
Halima said she was assaulted by three people and after reporting the matter to the police, she was turned the aggressor instead of being the victim.
At the same time, Rashid was accused of breaking into another trader’s shop and confiscated his goods estimated to be worth Ksh 1.3 million.
According to the trader, Ali Mohamed, the officer was directed to return the goods but he did not abide by the directive from IPOA and the Attorney General.
The trader also claimed that he was assaulted after being arrested by Rashid who allegedly threatened him with a panga and pistol pointed to his head.
Rashid is also said to be leading an illegal business at Lunapark near Pangani Police Station and he frustrates anyone who goes against him.
He is also linked to fraud after accusations of soliciting funds illegally from traders.
Murder charges
After a five-year investigations into the March 2017 shooting incident, Rashid is set to appear before the Court where he will be charged with murder.
The officer will be charged with the murder of the two young men after the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) approved the charges.
IPOA chairperson Ann Makori said they had established that the fatalities were occasioned by police action.
“Guided by Section 29 (a) of the IPOA Act, the findings were forwarded to the DPP with the recommendation to charge Corporal Ahmed Rashid, with murder
“The ODPP, after independently interrogating the case file upheld IPOA’s findings that there is sufficient evidence to charge the officer with the offence of murder,” Makori said.
IPOA moved to the Milimani High Court and obtained summons against the police officer, to take a plea on December 8.
