Police shoot dead Pakistani journalist Arshad Sharif

A senior Pakistani journalist was Sunday night shot dead by police officers along the Nairobi-Magadi highway.

Police termed the incident as a mistaken identity.

According to a police report, Arshad Sharif was shot in the head after he and his driver allegedly breached a roadblock set up to check motor vehicles using the route.

They were driving from Magadi town to Nairobi when they were flagged down at a roadblock being manned by a group of police officers, police said.

Police headquarters said Independent Policing Oversight Authority will take over the case.

A senior police officer confirmed the shooting and added a comprehensive statement will be released later.

“We had an incident of shooting which turned out to be a case of mistaken identity involving a journalist. We will release more information later,” the officer said.

According to police, at the roadblock, there was a call for police to intercept a car similar to the one they were driving following a carjacking incident in Pangani area, Nairobi where a child was taken hostage.

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And a few minutes later, Sharif’s car emerged at the roadblock and they were stopped and asked to identify themselves.

They allegedly failed to stop and drove past the roadblock.

This prompted a brief chase and shooting that left Sharif dead. Their car rolled and his driver was injured and taken to hospital.

He later told police he and his slain colleague were developers and were headed for a site in Magadi.

The news of the incident spread fast in Pakistan where the journalist was prominent.

Sharif’s wife Javeria Siddiqui took to Twitter and confirmed the tragic news, acknowledging that her husband was killed in Kenya.

“I lost friend, husband and my favourite journalist [Arshad Sharif] today, as per police he was shot in Kenya,” she tweeted.

She also urged the media and the public not to share their family pictures, personal details, and Sharif’s last pictures from the hospital on social media.

Sharif was previously associated with ARY News and had gone to Dubai after resigning from the channel.