A police officer attached to the Salama Police Post in Laikipia West Constituency stabbed and killed his colleague and injured his senior officer after an altercation on Friday, January 2, 2026, evening.
Police said Constable Victor Chesang’ Mengich, 42, was on duty when he reportedly attacked Constable Abel Kivoto Kimanzi after an altercation that turned fatal before members of the public from the nearby Salama shopping centre intervened.
During the melee, the officer in charge of the police post, Sergeant Wahome Muigai Muiruri, was at the shopping centre when he heard the distress calls and saw the two officers wrestling from a distance.
He rushed to the scene where he found Mengich armed with a knife, shortly before stabbing Kimanzi on the left side of the stomach, sending him to the ground where he succumbed after bleeding.
It is not clear what triggered the fatal altercation.
Kimanzi was among 20 police officers who were honoured on December 9, 2025, by the Chandaria Foundation for their extraordinary courage and dedication in their work during the annual Chandaria Bravery Award.
The ceremony was held at National Police Service (NPS) headquarters and was presided over by Inspector General (IG) Douglas Kanja.
According to witnesses, Muigai, in the company of another officer made frantic efforts to subdue the assailant but also sustained injuries during the scuffle.
It took the efforts of the members of the public to subdue the assailant who had gone berserk and managed to handcuff him before rushing him and Muigai to the nearby Salama dispensary where they received treatment before being referred to the Nyahururu County and Referral Hospital for further medical attention.
The duo sustained head and arms injuries.
Muigai was treated and discharged while the assailant was detained at the Nyahururu Police Station after treatment as investigations were launched to establish the cause of the incident.
Officers from Nyahururu Police Station were called in to process the scene of crime before taking the body of the deceased to Pope Benedict XVI Catholic Hospital Mortuary for preservation and autopsy.
Police said they are investigating the murder.
It comes amid growing trauma in the police in general.
This has prompted some officers to go berserk and attack colleagues and members of the public in the past days.
At least three police officers have died by suicide in the past month in a worrying trend.
Suicide is one of the leading causes of deaths in the service.
Authorities police are exposed to many forms of trauma that lead some to suicide in a worrying trend.
As part of efforts to address the trend, police authorities have launched counselling services, and the National Police Service Commission has established a unit and staffed it to attend to their demanding situation.
The counselling unit, among other things, evaluates, designs and leads an outreach programme that helps prevent mental health and substance abuse
Officials say police are generally on the receiving end of all community problems.
They are expected to maintain law and order in very difficult situations, besides putting their lives at risk.
Over the years, a spike in deaths in the service has been linked to trauma.
The World Health Organisation says such cases are also attributed to joblessness, death, academic failures or pressures, legal difficulties and financial difficulties.
Other reasons are bullying, previous suicide attempts, history of suicide in a family, alcoholism and substance misuse, depression and bipolar disorder.
The government says efforts are being made to address the menace.
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