An associate editor for Kenya’s leading news outlet, The Standard, was seized by armed men late Tuesday and later released near a dam about nine hours after the incident, according to his employer on Wednesday.
Alex Kiprotich was taken from his vehicle at roughly 9:20 p.m. on Tuesday on a road close to Nakuru.
The outlet, known for its critical coverage of the government, said in a press release that “the circumstances surrounding Mr. Kiprotich’s abduction remain deeply troubling, and we will continue to press for full accountability” following his rescue.
Standard Group’s CEO, Chaacha Mwita, added later on Tuesday that the abduction “bears all the hallmarks of a targeted attack on a journalist for doing his job.”
What do we know about the apparent abduction?
The newspaper released an overnight video that appears to be dash‑cam footage from the car Kiprotich was traveling in when he was abducted.
In the footage, a white vehicle with no visible markings pulled up alongside the car in an area where temporary barriers had created a single‑lane bottleneck on the Gilgil‑Nakuru highway, and activated its hazard lights.
Four men dressed in civilian clothing and hiding their faces — some armed with firearms, others with what appeared to be baseball bats — emerged, surrounded the car, and quickly seized the driver, placing him in their vehicle before speeding away.
On Wednesday, Standard Group announced that Kiprotich had been found near a dam more than 200 kilometers (120 miles) southeast of the abduction site, about nine hours after the incident.
The team, led by CEO Chaacha Mwita, located Mr. Kiprotich near Masinga Dam at around 6:30 a.m., after he was left behind by his captors in the early morning hours, the statement said.
Kiprotich was found safe, though understandably shaken by the ordeal, his employer said. He works for The Standard, a flagship newspaper of the media group known for its critical coverage of President William Ruto’s government.
Rights groups say activists still being abducted in Kenya
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Right groups call for investigation, warn of pattern of abductions and intimidation
Kenyan police and the government did not immediately comment on the incident.
According to a report released this week, dozens of government critics and activists have been abducted in Kenya this year alone, a practice that has become more frequent since the widespread anti‑government protests in 2024.
Human‑rights groups have accused state agencies of being responsible, and Standard Group expressed similar suspicions regarding this case.
Kiprotich recounted a previous kidnapping attempt in June, when he narrowly escaped an abduction that occurred three days after President Ruto criticized the Standard Group on social media.
Kenya’s editors’ guild stated it was “shocked, outraged and deeply perturbed” by Tuesday’s abduction, calling it “a disturbing escalation in the intimidation and targeting of journalists in Kenya.”
Amnesty International Kenya urged an independent investigation, noting that the incident raises “serious concerns for media freedom.”
Edited by: Zac Crellin
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