This archive report was first published on 20 December 2019.
On September 15, a violent confrontation erupted between a 30-year-old hawker and a 36-year-old handcart pusher in Eastleigh's First Avenue, Nairobi.
The incident occurred when the handcart pusher, Joseph Etabale Andayi, swerved off the road to avoid a head-on-collision with a vehicle, but instead landed on the hawker's wares on display by the roadside.
Angered by the damage to his goods, the hawker, William Odongo Oyaro, and his colleagues descended on Andayi with blows and kicks, ignoring his pleas to pay for the damages.
During the melee, Oyaro reportedly took a piece of wood and hit Andayi on the eye, inflicting serious injuries. Andayi also lost his mobile phone worth Sh10,000 and Sh50,000 in cash.
Andayi reported the matter at the Eastleigh Police post and was treated at the Kenyatta National Hospital.
Police tracked down and arrested Oyaro, who was arraigned in court on December 20, 2019.
Oyaro denied the charges before Makadara senior resident magistrate Eunice Suter and was freed on a cash bail of Sh100,000.
The case is set to commence on April 3, 2020.
