Police in Embu County on Monday evening shot and seriously injured a matatu driver, triggering protests by residents.
The officers were manning a road block in Kangaru village when they waved the driver to stop for inspection but he allegedly defied.
At that point, one of the senior officers opened fire and wounded the driver.
The officers then pulled the driver out of the vehicle as the passengers screamed in panic and rushed him to the nearby Embu Referral Hospital for treatment.
Witnesses said the police suspected that the driver was carrying criminals in the matatu and that is why they shot at the vehicle and injured him.
“The officers wanted to check whether there were criminals among the passengers but the driver failed to stop forcing the law enforcers to act by shooting him,” said Ms Mary Kageni.
Residents blocked the roads in protest, accusing the police of injuring an innocent driver.
They dismissed as false claims that the driver had defied police orders.
“The driver stopped but the police went ahead to shoot him,” said another resident.
County Police Commander Daniel Rukunga confirmed the incident and promised to give a comprehensive statement later.
“I’m heading to the scene and I will give a statement after establishing what really transpired,” said Mr Rukunga.
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