Kenyan Sports Stars Detained Over Cyber Harassment, State House Protest Allegations

A former Kenyan boxing champion Suleiman Bilali together with the former Harambee Stars captain has been detained in police custody until tomorrow awaiting to know their fate on cyber harassment allegations.

Bilali jointly with Robert Otiti were presented before a Milimani senior principal Magistrate Dolphina Alego on a miscellaneous application where investigators were requesting to have them in their custody for 10 days.

Sergeant Samuel Itegi, attached to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations Headquarters requested the court to grant orders of detention to conclude investigations into the alleged publication of false information contrary to Section 23 of the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act.

He told the magistrate he needed the time sought to subject exhibit phones to forensic analysis, obtain bank M-Pesa statements, and record statements from key witnesses.

The duo were arrested on June 24, 2025, at Muthurwa and Kayole respectively in connection to the offence of publication of false information and booked at Capitol Hill police station where the matter was reported.

The officer told the court that he received intelligence information that a timetable was circulating on various social media platforms with inflammatory and inciting messages urging members of the public to attend a protest march whose aim was to unlawfully take over and occupy State House on June 25, 2025′

“The said publication was traced to an X account @daguindd before it went viral on various social media platforms,” the officer told the court.

The officer said that the suspects are believed to be part of the suspected individuals who planned to infiltrate peaceful demonstrations organized by the young people of Kenya (Gen-Z), to engage in unlawful acts of stealing from shops and assaulting innocent citizens together with promoting ideologies that undermines the security of the country.

The officer informed the court that there were widespread demonstrations in the country including Nairobi city where property from several shops was stolen, and many casualties and deaths were reported.

The former boxer and football star and others who were not before the court were accused of mobilizing people with the intention to steal and breach the security at State House, a National security asset in breach of both the public order and the Protected Areas Act.

The officer claims that the publication of such material on the public social media pages led to violent agitation by the general public, a matter that has a negative security impact.

The defence team led by Embakasi East Member of Parliament Babu Owino, Abna Mango, and John Maina vehemently opposed the application of detention saying it lacked merit and was vicious urging the court to ignore it,

“Article 49 of the constitution was abused since the suspects were arrested on June 24, 2025, and arraigned two days later, past 24 hours,” Babu submitted.

He said that the suspects do not own the X account which the posts emanated from and is linked to advocate Ndiangui Kinyagia whose whereabouts are unknown after he was abducted by people believed to be police officers.

The MP also informed the magistrate that the suspects were denied police bail, which is their right.

He further pleaded with the court to release them on free bond, as no compelling reasons had been presented to substantiate further detention.

Mango told the court that Bilali has served this country as a police officer and a boxer known in the Muthurwa and Makongeni Area where he resides as a boxing trainer.

He added that Otiti served as a national football captain and he is not supposed to be treated as a criminal.

On his part, Maina told the court that the suspects were not a flight risk since they were arrested in their homes with their families.

He told the magistrate to dismiss the application and release them on bail.