George Ndikas testifying before Milimani Court in Rex Masai inquest/JAMES GICHIGI

By JAMES GICHIGI

Ndikas says they were moving away from the area after hearing gunshots when he noticed Rex had started limping. The inquest into the death of Rex Masai has heard that at least three gunshots were fired moments before the protester began limping during the June 20, 2024 demonstrations in Nairobi.

Testifying before Senior Principal Magistrate Geoffrey Onsaringo, Rex’s friend George Ndikas told the court that they were among protesters who had gathered in the city centre when gunshots rang out, forcing people to flee in different directions.

Ndikas said he and Rex were moving away from the area after hearing gunshots when he noticed that Rex had started limping.

“The people moved to the other side because of gunshots,” he told the court.

He said a video played in court showed the moment a man was seen firing at protesters, adding that he was able to identify himself and Rex in the footage.

According to Ndikas, by the time the footage showed the man firing, protesters had already started running in the opposite direction and Rex was struggling to move.

“Rex was leaving because he was shot,” he said, repeating the account he had given in his earlier appearance before the court.

He told the court that he heard about three gunshots during the chaos and believes one of them could have struck Rex.

“I heard about three gunshot sounds. There is a possibility one of the gunshots may have caught Rex Masai,” he said, while under cross examination.

Ndikas explained that when protesters changed direction to escape the gunfire, Rex began limping.

During cross-examination by state counsel from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Ndikas maintained that Rex only started limping after the gunshots were heard.

He told the court that the group was running away from the direction of the gunfire when Rex showed signs of injury.

The court also heard medical evidence from government pathologist Dr Johansen Oduor, who conducted a postmortem on Rex’s body at the Nairobi Funeral Home on June 21, 2024.

Oduor told the court that Rex died from haemorrhage caused by a single gunshot wound to the left thigh.

"He was pale, a sign usually seen in people who have lost a lot of blood, sockets were sunken, with no other injuries," he submitted.

Oduor said the bullet entered from the back of the thigh and exited through the front, causing severe bleeding that led to death.

The pathologist added that no other injuries were found on the body and that internal examination showed extensive bleeding in the thigh muscles.

"I concluded what led to his death was haemorrhage which was bleeding causes by a single gunshot wound to left thigh," he said.

The inquest is seeking to establish the circumstances surrounding Rex Masai’s death during the 2024 anti-finance bill protests in Nairobi.

The hearing continues. The Star