Drama as man sets himself on fire outside Supreme Court in Nairobi

There was drama when a man set himself on fire outside the Supreme Court in Nairobi on Tuesday morning.

Documents found on him identified him as Kennedy Kipira and said he took the steps over delay justice. He sustained burns in his buttocks, face, hand and back following the morning incident.

Medics said the burns were not serious. He was rescued and rushed to the hospital by an ambulance from the Nairobi County government.

Witnesses and police said Kipira arrived at the precincts in the morning and pretended to talk to security officials there before he embarked on his mission to light fire on himself.

He had carried a bottle full of petrol that was concealed in a bag. He then poured the petrol on his neck and reached out to a lighter he had in his pocket. By then, security at the court had spotted him.

He had carried a bundle of documents. The smell of the guards there raised their alarm. They knew he was on a mission.

He then lit the fire on his neck but when it failed he squatted and light the fire from his buttocks. He then tried to rescue himself out of the pain he was feeling and removed his jacket and threw it few meters away before also removing his shirt that had caught fire.

Witnesses said he then stumbled and fell few meters ahead outside the gate as security at the courts rushed out with a fire extinguisher helping him.

An ambulance arrived minutes later and carried him to hospital. Documents found on him showed he is frustrated over a car sale agreement he entered in Mombasa in 2023 before the case went to court.

The documents showed he had apparently bought a car in Mombasa and paid a deposit of Sh300,000 before trying to drive it to Nairobi.

The car was involved in an accident which forced him to have it taken back to Mombasa at his own expense because it was not insured then. He intended to use it for taxi businesses.

The sellers then asked him to pay the full amount of the car which was Sh1.3 million before they could repair it and hand it to him.

This prompted him to move to court and the case has been dragging there since then. He said he had been to court several times but was yet to get justice.

The judiciary is yet to comment on the issue. The judiciary is struggling to clear thousands of pending cases.