This archive report was first published on 27 July 2020.
On July 27, 2020, a Kenyan journalist, Isaac Kibet Yego, was arrested in Eldoret, Uasin Gishu county, for posting false information on social media claiming Interior CS Fred Matiang'i was admitted to ICU with Covid-19.
According to reports, the police had sought to detain Yego for 14 days, but Milimani Chief Magistrate Martha Mutuku rejected the application, ruling that two days was enough for the investigating officer to complete investigations.
Investigating officer Nicolas Ole Sena claimed that Yego's post was false and was made with intent to cause alarm and panic to citizens in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic in the country.
Yego's lawyers opposed the application, claiming it was an infringement of his rights and that he had nothing to do with the Facebook page where the post was made.
