Nairobi Lawyer Threatens to Jump From Eighth Floor During Arrest

A lawyer accused of forging documents in a labour dispute threatened to jump from a window during an attempted arrest at his office in Nairobi’s Westlands district on Thursday.

Detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) went to the lawyer’s office on the eighth floor of The Westery Building after the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) directed that he be arrested and charged. The lawyer had earlier been summoned to Parklands Police Station but failed to appear, prompting investigators to begin searching for him.

When officers traced him to his office, he resisted arrest and allegedly bit two policemen who tried to restrain him. The case follows a complaint by officials of the Kenya County Government Workers Union, Nairobi Branch. They accused the lawyer of forging their signatures on documents filed before the Employment and Labour Relations Court in 2022.

One of the disputed documents was a Change of Signatory and Fee Note Agreement, which purportedly required the union to pay the lawyer Ksh150 million after the conclusion of a case. Forensic examination later found that the signatures on the documents were not genuine.

Prosecutors subsequently approved charges of forgery and uttering false documents earlier this month. Investigators said the lawyer’s failure to respond to police summons led to Thursday’s operation.