A police officer accused of being present at the scene where activist Rex Masai was shot dead during anti-finance bill protests has denied any involvement, telling the court that he was stationed elsewhere and is not the officer captured in the photos presented as evidence.

Appearing before the Milimani Law Courts on Wednesday during the ongoing inquest into the killing, Police Constable Isaiah Murangiri dismissed photographs allegedly showing him along Uhuru Highway during the June 18, 2024, protests, saying he had been deployed at the main entrance of the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) and never left his post.

"I'm not the one. According to me, the pictures bear no resemblance," he told Magistrate Onsarigo.

Murangiri said that although he had been issued with teargas canisters during the deployment, he did not use them as protesters did not reach the KICC gate. He maintained he did not move from the location for the entire day.

“Firearms and crowd-control equipment should only be used when protecting yourself, protecting someone else, or responding to an active threat,” he added.

The state counsel had argued that the person appearing in several photographs taken during the protests closely resembled Murangiri and was seen in different locations around the city on that day.

However, Murangiri’s testimony on Wednesday appeared to contradict his earlier statements. He had previously told the court he was not even on duty that day, claiming he was at home looking for his sick child.

The Independent Policing Oversight Authority (Ipoa) highlighted these inconsistencies, raising concerns about the credibility of his testimony. Ipoa said Murangiri had earlier stated that he was off duty on June 18 and was not near the city centre during the protests.

Paul Njihia, an assistant director of forensic investigations at Ipoa, also testified in court. He told the inquest that he was instructed by the Deputy Director of Investigations to visit Mama Ngina Street on June 22 to gather evidence from the area where Rex Masai was allegedly shot.

“At the scene, I observed what appeared to be dried blood near the International Life House,” Njihia said.

He collected samples for DNA testing and also reported seeing a bullet hole in a nearby building window, which he said was likely caused by live ammunition. He recovered a deformed bullet from the scene and handed it to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations for ballistic analysis.

“I collected and documented the samples for DNA analysis and recovered a deformed bullet, which I forwarded to the DCI for ballistic examination,” he testified.

Njihia’s photographs from the scene were submitted in court as part of the evidence.

The inquest is expected to continue on July 17.