The Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) has told MPs that hard disks from CCTV systems at Nairobi’s Central Police Station were replaced and formatted just hours after the death of Albert Ojwang.

IPOA chairperson Issack Hassan said digital video recorder logs showed the formatting and replacement happened on June 8, 2025, between 07:23:29 and 07:23:48 hours.

Ojwang had been booked at the station the night before, on June 7 at 21:35 hours, under Occurrence Book number 136/7/6/2025.

Hassan told the National Assembly Security Committee that the move to replace and format the hard disks appeared to be a planned attempt to erase evidence related to the events before Ojwang’s death in police custody.

“Somebody called someone to come and switch off a particular section, but he said he could only shut down the entire system,” Hassan said.

“The DVR logs indicated that the operating discs had been changed and formatted on June 8, 2025, at 07:23:48 hours and 07:23:29 hours,” he added.

Hassan said IPOA had already recorded statements from police officers and other people who were present at the station that day.

Because of the sensitive nature of the findings, he asked for a private session with the committee to share more details.

“There is information we cannot reveal here in public, and we ask for a private session with the committee so that we can share that,” he said.

Committee chair Gabriel Tongoyo agreed to the request but asked IPOA to first give a public update on areas that are not sensitive before they go into a closed session.

The CCTV revelations come just a day after IPOA vice chairperson Anne Wanjiku told the Senate that there had been interference with the surveillance system at the OCS’s office. She said that Ojwang’s death was not a suicide.

“One of the key findings was that the CCTV systems located at the OCS’s office had been interfered with,” Wanjiku said. “The autopsy report and our preliminary investigation rule out the theory of suicide.”

She also said IPOA learned about the case through media reports and a police signal from the Inspector General, after which the authority launched investigations and made progress on several fronts.

At the same meeting with MPs on Thursday, Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja said that Deputy Inspector General Eliud Lagat will step aside if his name is mentioned in the IPOA probe. He said no one would be protected from accountability.

“There is an ongoing investigation by IPOA, and every person whose name is mentioned as having played any role in the death of the late Albert Ojwang must record a statement and give their side,” Kanja said.

“If the DIG is going to be mentioned, then definitely he will make a statement. I believe it is on that basis that he can step aside to allow for the completion of the investigation.”

Ojwang’s death has sparked public outrage and strong calls for justice and police accountability. Both Parliament and IPOA are running parallel investigations into the incident.