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By Patrick Mutisya in Makueni County
A middle-aged man from Kibwezi in Makueni County drowned on Tuesday, April 21, while attempting to evade arrest for not wearing a face mask.
The man was being chased by police officers at Kambu Market, when he jumped into a swollen fish pond and drowned, witnesses said.
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“The police officers who were chasing him did not bother to rescue him. When they saw he had jumped into the pond, they walked away,” one of the eye witnesses told K24 Digital.
The victim’s body was later removed and taken to a Kibwezi hospital morgue.
The incident came hours after Makueni County Commissioner Mohammed Maalim directed all law enforcement agents, including chiefs, their assistants and police, to ensure that anyone walking in public has a face mask on.
Mohammed warned that any person who would be found in public without the protective mask, will be arrested and charged.
On April 10, the Ministry of Health published a notice in Kenyan newspapers warning that any Kenyan citizen who walks in public without wearing a face mask, will be arrested and, upon conviction, risks parting with a fine of Ksh20, 000 or serving a 6-month jail term, or both.
The order was issued to curb the spread of coronavirus in Kenya.
