A Nairobi court has stopped the police from arresting blogger Ndiangui Kinyagia, who resurfaced on Thursday and appeared in court after being reported missing for nearly two weeks.

High Court Judge Chacha Mwita issued the order during the mention of a case filed by Ndiangui’s family, which accused the state and the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) of abducting him. Ndiangui had disappeared on June 21, prompting public concern and legal action.

On Tuesday, the court had directed DCI boss Mohamed Amin to appear in person to explain the blogger’s whereabouts.

However, that same evening, Ndiangui contacted his family, informing them that he was safe.

"Your honour, the second petitioner (Ndiangui) is in court today and we would like to have time with him before we return to court," family lawyer Kibe Mungai told the judge.

State counsel Emmanuel Bita, who represented the DCI and Amin, did not oppose the application.

The petitioners, led by senior counsel Martha Karua, also agreed to give the family more time.

"We would have wanted to grill the DCI boss now that he is here, but we would give preference to the request by the family," Karua told the court.

Another lawyer, Willis Otieno, urged the court to stop any attempts by police to arrest Ndiangui after the proceedings, warning that he could still be targeted despite being a petitioner.

Justice Mwita then ruled that Ndiangui should be allowed to spend time with his family and that he should not be arrested or detained.

"The police shall not arrest the second petitioner (Ndiangui Kinyangia) since he's now a petitioner in this matter," Mwita said. "He should not be arrested or detained, but can be escorted to the DCI by the family for statement recording if need be."

The case will be heard again on July 18.