NAIROBI, Kenya, Mar 24 — The DCI used a combination of mobile phone tracking, forensic analysis, and intelligence gathering to establish that former Cabinet Secretary Raphael Tuju never left his residence during a disappearance authorities now describe as a staged “self-abduction”.
The operation began after Tuju’s family initially denied police access to his compound along Miotoni Drive in the upscale Karen suburb, which Amin said immediately raised suspicion.
“Why would a mother whose husband has disappeared for the last couple of hours fail to cooperate with the police and share whatever information she had with the investigating officers?” DCI boss Mohamed Amin posed asked during a press briefing.
A joint team of uniformed officers and plainclothes detectives was deployed late Saturday night to secure the residence, while investigators simultaneously sought a court-sanctioned search warrant.
“The homestead was fully cordoned off to preserve the scene and prevent any potential interference or flight,” Amin said.
Police said intelligence and forensic analysis of telecommunications data indicated that Tuju remained inside his home even after switching off his phone at 6:18 p.m. on March 21.
“Based on solid intelligence and meticulous forensic analysis, the Directorate of Criminal Investigations conclusively — and I say this without an iota of doubt — that Tuju was physically present within his residence throughout the period in question,” Amin stated.
The DCI concluded that the disappearance was staged after Tuju resurfaced only when police were closing in on the residence, confirming investigators’ suspicions.
“When confronted with the reality that police were closing in on the truth and his deception could no longer be sustained, Mr. Tuju chose to resurface,” Amin said.
Detained
Tuju was subsequently arrested and booked at Karen Police Station, where he is expected to explain his whereabouts, the circumstances surrounding an abandoned vehicle discovered earlier, and reports filed by family members that had initially suggested a possible abduction.
Authorities are also seeking details about individuals Tuju said offered him shelter near the Karen–Kiambu boundary, as well as other related contacts.
Amin described the case as a deliberate attempt to mislead the public and divert law enforcement resources.
“The conduct appears to be a calculated effort to deceive the public, generate unwarranted sympathy, and undermine the integrity of the National Police Service and the Directorate of Criminal Investigations,” he said.
The DCI has also documented several similar cases involving alleged staged disappearances by public figures, warning that providing false information to authorities is a serious criminal offence under Section 129 of the Penal Code.
“Our objective is clear: to end this emerging culture of deception and restore full public confidence in our security operations,” Amin added.
Tuju, on the other hand, has maintained that he went into hiding after noticing he was being trailed by unidentified vehicles, including a Land Cruiser without registration plates, while driving through Karen on Saturday evening.
He abandoned his car along Miotoni Lane and sought refuge at a private residence near the Kiambu border.
“I want to thank a family in Kiambu… they didn’t care what my tribe is. They just saw me as a human being,” Tuju said earlier on Monday.
The episode, which sparked widespread concern after his car was found abandoned with hazard lights on, comes amid a legal dispute over Tuju’s Dari Business Park in Karen, where lenders are seeking to recover debts linked to his company.
