Police Break Silence On Officer Arrested In Kanungu, Speaks Out On Viral Video

Police have dismissed social media reports claiming that the Officer in Charge of the Criminal Investigations Department (OC-CID) in Kanungu District was the man violently arrested during an anti-corruption rally in Kihihi, clarifying that the individual captured in the viral video is a retired Assistant Inspector of Police.

In a statement issued to clarify the circumstances surrounding the arrest, police said the retired officer was being sought over an alleged assault on his biological sister arising from a land dispute, not in connection with corruption allegations against serving officers.

The clarification follows the circulation of a video showing officers struggling to force a man dressed in civilian clothing onto a police pickup, sparking public discussion about the circumstances of the arrest and the force used.

According to police, investigations into the alleged assault were completed and the case file submitted to the Resident Senior State Attorney, who advised that the suspect and his wife be charged with attempted murder.

Police further explained that two previous attempts to arrest the retired officer had been unsuccessful after he allegedly evaded arrest.

He was eventually arrested on Tuesday during an anti-corruption rally organised by Local Government Minister Balaam Barugahara Ateenyi in Kihihi.

The arrest reportedly turned confrontational when the suspect resisted officers attempting to place him on a police pickup. Police allege that he punched officers during the struggle, prompting them to use force to subdue him before taking him to the Central Police Station.

Addressing concerns raised by the footage, police acknowledged the public’s questions about the level of force used during the operation, while noting that the alleged resistance forms part of the circumstances that must be considered in assessing what happened.

However, the police statement stressed that the reported resistance does not, by itself, establish whether the force used by officers was justified.

Police said they would examine the full circumstances of the incident, including the conduct of the officers involved and that of the suspect.

The clarification effectively dispels earlier social media claims identifying the arrested man as the serving Kanungu OC-CID, establishing instead that he is a retired police officer facing a separate criminal investigation linked to an alleged family land dispute.