LSK Demands Probe Into "Rogue" SOG Unit After Abdi Is Found Alive

LSK President Charles Kanjama Speaking at an Event

The Law Society of Kenya (LSK) wants an investigation into a police unit it calls rogue. The demand came after missing lawyer Abshir Ahmedsadak Abdi was found alive, 11 days after he was allegedly abducted. LSK President Charles Kanjama spoke on Thursday.

Kanjama said an LSK team had confirmed that Abdi is alive. The team found him in Sololo, Marsabit County. The lawyer had been missing since he was seized in Nairobi.

Kanjama named the Special Operations Group (SOG) as the unit behind the abduction. He said specialised police teams linked to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) carried out the operation. He argued that such units are not part of the constitutional design of policing.

He pointed to other cases as well. Kanjama referred to the abduction of a Standard Media Group editor. In that case, he said, the Operations Support Unit (OSU), which sits under the DCI, was blamed. He said these units operate outside the law.

Kanjama said the LSK will not end its protest until two things happen. Abdi and a second man, who was also abducted, must be reunited with their families. Those responsible must also be held to account, he said. He added that people who give orders and supply resources to such units must face justice too.

Former LSK President Eric Theuri said Abdi had been dumped after being tortured by his captors. He said the lawyer was left in Marsabit and is now at Sololo Police Station. Theuri called the treatment inhumane and said the government had no moral authority to rule. 

He also urged Kenyans to carry out a citizen's arrest on Siyad Mohamed, whom he described as an alleged National Intelligence Service officer linked to the abduction. These claims have not been independently confirmed.

LSK had earlier declared a nationwide court boycott. Lawyers agreed to stop normal court work until Abdi is produced before a court. The boycott followed a march from Milimani Law Courts to Jogoo House, the office of the Inspector-General of Police, where lawyers demanded answers.