The Standard Group Centre, Nairobi. Photo: Nairobi123 via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
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Standard editor abducted at Gilgil, dumped near Masinga Dam.
Standard Group Associate Editor Alex Kiprotich was abducted by armed men on Tuesday night, 1 September 2026, and found the following morning near Masinga Dam in Machakos County, more than 200 kilometres from where he was taken.
According to a Standard Group statement, Kiprotich was seized shortly before 9.20pm on the Gilgil – Nakuru road while travelling to Nakuru. He managed to call the company's head of security, Tom Kipyegon: "Tom, we have been hijacked! We have been hijacked at Gilgil!"
The Standard reports he was taken by four masked men armed with an AK-47 in a Subaru with registration KDC 125E, which it says a check showed to be a government vehicle. He was dumped at about 2am near the dam and sheltered with a nearby family until a Standard Group team found him at around 6.30am on Wednesday.
The Standard says his captors questioned him repeatedly about where the newspaper gets its stories and how its headlines are decided.
Reaction
Standard Group CEO Chaacha Mwita said Kiprotich was "safe and okay, though visibly shaken by the ordeal". Inspector General Douglas Kanja ordered immediate investigations, and police spokesperson Muchiri Nyaga said the Anti-Abduction Unit "is actively investigating and will ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice".
Media Council of Kenya CEO David Omwoyo said the council was "perturbed by the daring abduction", noting that media freedom is guaranteed under Article 34 of the Constitution. Kenya Editors Guild President Zubeidah Kananu demanded "a swift and independent investigation".
The incident revives concern about abductions and press freedom less than a year before the 2027 General Election.
Sources: The Standard; The Star; Nation
That was a Kibra News Network report, read by an A I voice.
Standard Group Associate Editor Alex Kiprotich was abducted by armed men on Tuesday night, 1 September 2026, and found the following morning near Masinga Dam in Machakos County, more than 200 kilometres from where he was taken.
According to a Standard Group statement, Kiprotich was seized shortly before 9.20pm on the Gilgil–Nakuru road while travelling to Nakuru. He managed to call the company’s head of security, Tom Kipyegon: “Tom, we have been hijacked! We have been hijacked at Gilgil!”
The Standard reports he was taken by four masked men armed with an AK-47 in a Subaru with registration KDC 125E, which it says a check showed to be a government vehicle. He was dumped at about 2am near the dam and sheltered with a nearby family until a Standard Group team found him at around 6.30am on Wednesday.
The Standard says his captors questioned him repeatedly about where the newspaper gets its stories and how its headlines are decided.
Reaction
Standard Group CEO Chaacha Mwita said Kiprotich was “safe and okay, though visibly shaken by the ordeal”. Inspector General Douglas Kanja ordered immediate investigations, and police spokesperson Muchiri Nyaga said the Anti-Abduction Unit “is actively investigating and will ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice”.
Media Council of Kenya CEO David Omwoyo said the council was “perturbed by the daring abduction”, noting that media freedom is guaranteed under Article 34 of the Constitution. Kenya Editors Guild President Zubeidah Kananu demanded “a swift and independent investigation”.
The incident revives concern about abductions and press freedom less than a year before the 2027 General Election.
KNN Newsroom is the staff byline for stories written, rewritten and edited at the Kibra News Network desk. Where a story credits an outside outlet, the original source is linked at the foot of the piece.
