This archive report was first published on 9 September 2019.
On Monday, a court in Kenya ordered medical checks for suspects in the Sh72 million Standard Chartered Bank heist, citing claims of torture by police.
The order came after one of the lawyers representing the suspects alleged that the police officers who arrested and interrogated them had subjected them to torture.
The suspects, including three Administration Police officers and three civilians, were detained for a week at Lang'ata Police Station, where the alleged torture took place.
According to the lawyer, Cliff Ombeta, one of the suspects, Vincent Owuor, was forced to claim he was a police officer, despite being a civilian. He also alleged that another suspect's finger was pierced and dipped in pepper before he was compelled to make a false statement.
Mr. Ombeta further claimed that Duncan Luvuga, another suspect, was immersed in water and beaten up, sustaining head injuries.
The defence team argued that the police should have gathered enough evidence before arresting the suspects, and that the detention was unnecessary.
However, the investigating officer argued that the suspects needed to be detained at Lang'ata Police Station so that their houses could be searched.
On September 5, a group of G4S officers were arraigned and detained for seven days by the same magistrate, and the court was asked to detain the new suspects for a similar period.
Chief Magistrate Martha Mutuku said, "The court appreciates the complex nature of this case. The court should take judicial notice that all suspects should be treated fairly."
