Simon Matheri Ikere Surrendered But Was Still Gunned Down: Why Jubilant Kenyans Now Support Extra-Judicial Killings

The Kenya television network (KTN) last night conducted a fascinating opinion poll asking whether the execution by the police of a most wanted criminal was justified even after the notorious killer surrendered to authorities early yesterday morning in Athi River town.

Amazingly, 61% approved of the police action of gunning down Simon Matheri Ikere while 39% said the action was extra-judicial and he should have been arrested and charged in court for the crimes he allegedly committed.

According to the police, Matheri was almost single-handedly responsible for the upsurge in crime-related killings in Nairobi for the past few months and had also been linked to various car- jackings, bank robberies and murders.

His photograph was distributed to the media last week along with those of five others who police said were the most wanted criminals and cash rewards were offered to those who would pass information leading to their arrest nay, gunning down.

Matheri bit the bullet and knew it, by walking out of his estranged wife's house in Athi river with his hands up and dressed in only boxer shorts to prove to the police he had no concealed weapons, never-the-less, he was shot in the head after police confirmed he was 'their man'.

His death was music to the ears of those who lived in Gachie near Nairobi, the gangsters former abode as they celebrated and rejoiced on learning of his death. Hundreds of wananchi personally went to the city mortuary to confirm that he was actually the one that had been killed and came out smiling and singing while others said they would slaughter a goat to celebrate.

Why do majority of Kenyans prefer that the police should execute dangerous criminals and not grant them their right to trial before a court of law?

For starters, Kenya's judicial system is notorious for corruption and many people feel that if one is rich or has the right 'connections', there is no way you can go to jail even if enough evidence has been adduced to warrant a conviction.

In Matheri's case, he could easily have used his ill-gotten wealth to bribe a magistrate or even a judge and get released on a 'technicality' to the chagrin of law abiding citizens and his surviving victims.

And again, prosecutors in the country are known for their shoddy jobs not to mention that they are poorly paid police officers who are not properly trained in law and their evidence is usually pocked holes by shrewd lawyers who can easily get an acquittal for a violent robber.

It is also possible that police don’t have any tangible evidence to link Matheri to most of the crimes they accuse him of and if brought before a court of law, the only charge that can stick is being found with a firearm without a license, which is a minor bailable offence. He could then have been convicted to serve a few years in jail for the firearms charge. Facilities in the country are such that it is very difficult to even link weapons to a murder or violent crime.

All in all, this means that arresting Matheri and taking him in alive would have posed major challenges to the police in getting a successful prosecution. And because of the rampant corruption in the prisons department Matheri could even have been released pretty soon, long before the bad memories of his actions ould have had a chance to fade from the minds of the general public.

The police will also be happier to execute instead of arresting as this will usually save them a lot of time which is scarce considering their enormous workload of fighting brutal criminals every day who have just as deadly fire power as the police.

Then again, there is the issue of Matheri having had police contacts who assisted him. It could be very embarrassing for the gangster to go public with his list of contacts so it is usually much better that he dies as dead men tell no tales.

With the current alarming rate of criminal activities in the country, majority of Kenyans are practically living under siege and when a violent criminal is shot dead, it comes as a sigh of relief to many who consider one less bad guy has checked out for the next world and won't bother them again, not in this life, to say the least.

See also; The strange events of the night Simon Matheri died.

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