Kenya's top cop steps down after violent protests left 39 dead

By Andrew Wasike

NAIROBI, Kenya (AA) - Kenya’s police chief Japheth Koome stepped down on Friday, following weeks of violent protests over the now shelved finance bill in which at least 39 people died.

President William Ruto’s office said deputy inspector general Douglas Kanja was appointed as the acting head of the police force.

Violent protests rocked Kenya in June, and a subsequent crackdown resulted in the deaths and allegations of extrajudicial killings.

The outgoing inspector general had been under intense scrutiny, with rights groups and citizens calling for his resignation due to the increasing cases of abductions, killings, and torture, primarily targeting protesters.

In a latest incident that has fueled public anger, nine dismembered bodies were discovered in a dumpsite in Mukuru slums, in the capital Nairobi on Friday. Identity of the slain persons is not yet known.

The top cop’s resignation comes a day after Ruto sacked most of his cabinet members due to pressure from the protest movement against the bill that proposed tax hikes.

Ruto withdrew the bill, but the move failed to quell the protesters, who want him to step down.