A detective involved in the arrest of the Nairobi governor last year will undergo surgery to remove a bullet lodged in his back—Mike Sonko will foot the bill.
The bullet has been in Wundanyi DCI Richard Cheruiyot’s back for seven years.
Cheruiyot was shot by criminals who carjacked him while on his way home from the office in Nairobi.
“I was living in Nairobi then. One night, as I was going home, these thugs carjacked me, shot me, and stole the car,” Cheruiyot told the Star on the phone.
He was admitted to Aga Khan Hospital in Nairobi for about two weeks.
“I cannot walk for long. I get excruciating pain after some minutes’ walk. The bullet touched some nerves,” the DCIO said.
Sonko said despite the December 6 event—the arrest—he will take care of the hospital bill so Cheruiyot recovers fully.
On Thursday, Sonko told the Star he is willing to help the officer because he is a goodwill ambassador and a member of the Criminologists Association.
“There will always be misunderstandings between human beings. It is normal. But that does not mean people cannot shake hands and be friends,” he said.
On Thursday, Cheruiyot said he welcomes Sonko’s help. The officer is also diabetic and suffers from high blood pressure.
“That is when I met the governor for the first time,” he said of the December 6 arrest. “He was very mad at me then.”
The officer has been seeking help at different hospitals with little relief.
He, however, said doctors have assured him that the bullet can be removed without causing further damage.
“I have been going to Thika for medical attention but now I want to try Kijabe Mission Hospital, where I have been made aware that an operation like this has successfully been conducted before,” Cheruiyot said.
The officer, who has faced life-threatening situations before, said he does not mind Sonko’s help.
“When I arrested him it was work,” he told the Star.
Cheruiyot said someone from Sonko’s office got in touch with him after getting wind of his situation.
“I now have to get the doctor’s advice and see how this can be operated on,” he said.
Nairobi county director of communications Jacob Elkana said Sonko’s big heart is nothing new.
“He has helped people before. Even his greatest enemies. It is because he has a big heart,” Elkana said.
He said Cheruiyot’s testimony will inspire many, especially police officers. “He [Sonko] likes police officers. He is a friend of many of them,” Elkana said.
“That’s why he was honored by the International Police Association. He is also a member of the Criminologists Association of Kenya and through him many reformists have been absorbed in the county system.”
In 2014, Sonko adopted an 18-month-old baby, Satrine Osinya, who had a bullet lodged in his head after a March 3 terrorist attack on Joy Church in Likoni, Mombasa.
Satrine’s mother Veronica Atieno was killed in the attack. Sonko adopted Satrine and his elder brother Gift, and employed their father.
On Thursday, he said he will also meet the medical expenses of another officer with kidney problems.
“People think I am trying to mock the officers. This is farthest from the truth. I have no complaint against any of the officers in Voi that day,” he said.
“However, I will advise them and other police officers to handle unarmed suspects in a more humane way, no matter their social status.”
He cited the protests in the US over the killing of an African American man, George Floyd, in the hands of policemen about three weeks ago
Sonko said the global protests sparked off by the killing show the world is fed up with police brutality.
“Every suspect is presumed innocent until proven guilty by a court of law,” he said.