By Our Binocular
There was a tense moment at the Mombasa Law Court following a momentary breach of security.
In the Wednesday, January 10 incident, the suspect, identified as Musa Salim, snatched a gun from a prison officer during a court appearance.
According to a statement addressed to the Mombasa Law Court Chief Magistrate, Salim tried to shoot those around him after taking the loaded firearm.
However, he failed in his mission after the gun jammed in his attempt to cock it.
“The incident happened when an accused person grabbed a firearm from a Prison Officer and tried to shoot the people around, but he was not able to cock the firearm to enchamber it,” read the statement as reported by Nation.
The gun was swiftly taken away from him as the court orderlies responded to the chaos and took away the weapon.
Acknowledging the trauma associated with the experience, the letter revealed that the magistrate was whisked to safety.
The magistrate was reportedly shaken by the incident, forcing her to cancel all the cases that were to be before her.
“There is no doubt that this is a scary and unfortunate incident that should not have taken place. The Honorable Magistrate had to be whisked away back to her chambers. She was shaken after the incident, and all the matters before her had to be taken out,” concluded the letter.
The police at the Central Police Station were also informed, and investigations are underway to understand the circumstances that led to the breach of court security.
Salim, who was in court on theft charges, is likely to be added more charges after the incident in court.
In a related incident, a police officer attached to the Gem Critical Infrastructure Protection Unit (CIPU) was arrested after losing his firearm.
Job Geoffrey Koech was issued a Ceska pistol on Friday, May 26, to guard the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) Yala branch.
On Saturday, May 27, at around 5am, Koech reported off duty and proceeded to the quarters where he slept.
At around 3pm on the fateful day, he checked under his sofa set where he had kept the weapon and found it missing.
