Police work to solve mystery of IG Boinnet’s driver’s suicide
Inspector General Joseph Boinnet’s driver, Anthony Lemayan Lenkisol committed suicide on Sunday while on sick leave, it has now been revealed.
The incident happened at Mwamba estate on the outskirts of Narok town, according to the deceased’s brother, Evans Leteipa, who reported the matter to the police.
According to police report, Lemayan allegedly shot himself under the chin 50 mitres from his house.
Police said the deceased used his Jericho pistol to kill himself, even though it is against police standing orders for an officer to be in possession of a firearm when off-duty.
Police are also seeking answers on why he was allowed to carry his official firearm when he proceeded on sick leave.
GUNSHOT WOUNDS
The report adds that officers who went to the scene found a GSU officer attached to the IG’s office in Nairobi had shot himself. The body had two gunshot wounds one under the chin and an exit wound on the upper head.
Police recovered a pistol, a spent cartridge and a magazine containing 14 bullets at the crime scene, although there was no suicide note.
The body was taken to Narok County Referral Hospital mortuary for an autopsy.
The deceased had appeared before the promotion board and was waiting to be confirmed to the next rank of corporal.
Last month, while speaking in Mombasa at the Kenya School of Government where he met Coast Commanders, the Police boss said that he worried about the high cases of cops turning guns on themselves and other innocent civilians.
POLICE SUICIDES
“We want to support officers that require this help because of tremendous stresses that police work exert on us. Majority cops work very well but a few, occasionally, break down,” Boinnet said.
Boinnet said their work exerts tremendous stress that can lead to such decisions.
“But it concerns us a lot. For that reason, we have created a department of counselling which as of now, we are in the process of decentralising those services to the regions and if resources allow in the future we will go further to the counties,” he said.
Cases of officers killing themselves are frequent, which prompted the National Police Service Commission (NPSC) last October to establish a Counseling and Rehabilitation Centre.
“The commission has established the National Police Service Counselling and Rehabilitation Centre to assist the service in addressing psychosocial stress-related problems affecting the officers,” stated the commission.