This archive report was first published on 3 December 2019.
Nandi Senator Samson Cherargei has been arrested by detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) on December 3, 2019, over hate speech remarks he made in August 2019.
According to a statement from the DCI, Cherargei will be arraigned in court to face charges of ethnic contempt and inciting violence.
Cherargei's arrest follows his hateful utterances at Kilibwoni Primary School on August 17, 2019. He had previously been arrested over the same remarks in August 2019 but was later released on personal bond as investigations continued.
At the time of his first arrest, Cherargei claimed the summon by the DCI was politically-instigated move before he surrendered himself to the police.
Cherargei is a staunch supporter of Deputy President William Ruto and was summoned after he was captured in a short viral clip warning Ruto's critics of unspecified action.
He is quoted as saying, 'Those people who have continued to fight Deputy President William Ruto, we are profiling you. When you are fighting the deputy president, you are fighting us.'
He added, 'Do not think the DP does not have his supporters. Continue abusing him but know that we are marking and profiling you. When that time comes, we shall deal with you.'
