Kenyan prosecutors are preparing to charge several students with murder after a suspected arson attack at a boarding school killed 16 pupils and injured dozens more last month.
The fire broke out on May 28 at Utumishi Girls’ School in Gilgil, about 120 kilometres northwest of Nairobi. The victims, aged between 15 and 18, died after flames swept through the upper floor of a dormitory housing more than 200 students.
Eight students were later arrested after police said they were suspected of involvement in starting the blaze by setting mattresses on fire near an exit.
The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions said Wednesday that it had approved charges after reviewing the evidence gathered by investigators.
“Upon careful assessment of the evidence, the Director of Public Prosecutions has approved charges against the implicated students,” the prosecutor’s office said in a statement.
The suspects, who remain in custody, are expected to be formally charged in court on Friday. Prosecutors said they will face 16 counts of murder, one for each student killed in the fire.
Police said interviews with students and staff, along with a forensic review of CCTV footage, led investigators to identify eight pupils as persons of interest in the planning and execution of the attack.
The fire tore through a dormitory containing 135 bunk beds and housing 202 students. Survivors were forced to escape through a single doorway after an emergency exit reportedly failed to open.
Education Minister Julius Ogamba said preliminary findings pointed to several safety failures at the school, including overcrowded dormitories and a locked exit door.
The prosecutor’s office also raised concern over what it described as a rise in arson and related criminal conduct in Kenyan schools, warning that those responsible would face legal consequences.
Kenya has suffered repeated deadly school fires over the years, many of them in boarding institutions. Some have been linked to arson by students angered by disciplinary action, poor conditions or school management, while others have been blamed on accidents.
Safety failures, including overcrowding, locked exits and blocked escape routes, have repeatedly been cited as factors that increase casualties during school fires.