Kenyan arrested for ethnic incitement on Facebook
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Tuko
Kenya’s Directorate of Criminal Investigations arrested William Owuor Ochieng in Nairobi over Facebook posts that allegedly targeted members of the Kikuyu community in the Rift Valley. He allegedly called on those residents to leave the region before the 2027 general election, according to Tuko.
Kenya’s Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) arrested William Owuor Ochieng, a Facebook user known as “William Jahome”, in Nairobi. He is suspected of posting messages targeting Kikuyu residents in the Rift Valley and calling on them to leave the region before the 2027 general election, according to Tuko.
Investigators from the Criminal Research and Intelligence Bureau carried out the operation in central Nairobi. The DCI says the posts risked fuelling ethnic tensions and triggering violence. Ochieng was taken to the directorate’s headquarters and was due to appear in court.
The DCI warned against using social media to spread threats, incite violence or encourage ethnic hostility ahead of the election. The arrest comes amid political mobilisation ahead of the 2027 election, as Kenyan opposition leader Kalonzo Musyoka called for opposition unity on 25 October in an appeal to bring opposition forces together.
