A shocking court revelation has cast a harsh light on the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) and its Director General, Erastus Kanga, exposing what appears to be gross incompetence and mismanagement within the agency.
In a Nakuru court, a protected witness, John Doe, testified that he saw the missing fisherman, Brian Odhiambo, unconscious inside a KWS Land Cruiser following an incident at Lake Nakuru in January 2025.
Odhiambo had gone missing after allegedly being arrested by KWS rangers for illegal fishing, and the circumstances surrounding his disappearance now point to serious misconduct by the wildlife authority.
Doe, who testified virtually from Nakuru GK Prison where he is serving a sentence for illegal fishing, recounted that on January 18, 2025, he went fishing around 8 AM.
He noticed some of his colleagues running in panic from the Vietnam area of the lake and saw KWS rangers chasing after them.
Fearing for his safety, Doe surrendered but witnessed brutal treatment. He said a friend was struck with a baton, and eight others arrested in different areas were forced to lie down on the roadside while receiving blows and kicks from the officers.
Doe described how a green KWS Land Cruiser arrived to transport them, and inside he saw a man lying on his stomach, unconscious.
A ranger attempted to move him, but the man did not respond. Another officer checked for a pulse and, upon realizing he was dead, signaled to the others.
The in-charge silenced them and ordered the vehicle to drive off to a bush near the lake instead of taking the man to the offices. Doe identified the man as Brian Odhiambo, wearing black sports shorts with white stripes, no shirt, and no shoes.
Alex Maina, a casual laborer, corroborated the account, stating that Odhiambo was chased, assaulted, and thrown into the Land Cruiser “like a sack of potatoes.” He noted that the rangers ignored his shouts for help as they drove away.
These testimonies suggest a systematic failure within KWS, where officers under DG Kanga’s leadership allegedly treated human life with complete disregard.
Blogger Anwar Saddat weighed in, saying, “Yaani those KWS officers chopped Brian Odhiambo’s body and fed it to the wild animals! Some people don’t deserve to be called human beings.”
This chilling statement underlines the public outrage and perception of KWS’s brutality.
The case continues on September 8, but the evidence presented has already raised serious questions about the leadership of Erastus Kanga.
If his officers were involved in abducting and causing the death of Odhiambo, it points to systemic negligence and incompetence at the very top.
KWS, an agency tasked with protecting wildlife, appears to have failed the public entirely, leaving citizens exposed to abuse and fatal misconduct.
The incident is a stark reminder that leaders must be held accountable for the actions of those under their command, or trust in public institutions will continue to erode.
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