Tanzanian Journalist Exonerates Kenyan Police in Kidnapping Incident

Tanzanian Journalist Maria Sarungi: Kenyan Police Are Not Linked to My Abduction

Tanzanian journalist and activist, Maria Sarungi, has cleared Kenyan Police officers of any involvement in her abduction that occurred on Sunday.

Sarungi was seized at Chaka Place in Kilimani but was later freed following protests from Kenyans and human rights advocates.

In an account shared with the press in Nairobi on Monday evening, she disclosed that her captors intentionally evaded police checkpoints.

“At various stops, they ordered me to hide, and I heard someone speaking to them from outside the vehicle,” Sarungi stated.

She emphasized that her abductors lacked any security personnel and operated independently.

“After unsuccessfully trying to access my phone for the third time, they threatened to take me to the police. Believing it was police all along, I then questioned their identity,” Sarungi recalled.

She also noted that during transit, her captors frequently stopped the vehicle, exiting to deliberate among themselves.

At one point, she was left in the car with one of the three men, while the other two stepped outside to talk.

“Inside the vehicle, they were silent, but I noticed them signaling each other in an incomprehensible manner,” Sarungi added.