Fresh details emerging in the disappearance of Nairobi lawyer Abshir Ahmedsadak Abdi have brought renewed attention to an earlier dispute in which he accused security officers of arresting and intimidating him over his involvement in a criminal case at the Makadara Law Courts.
Court proceedings have heard that Abdi had previously complained about alleged interference by officers linked to the Anti-Terrorism Police Unit (ATPU) and intelligence agencies, claiming they wanted him to abandon his role in the case.
The earlier complaints, made in October 2025, are now part of the background being examined as investigators seek to establish what happened to the missing advocate.
Lawyer Alleged Threats Over Criminal Proceedings
In an affidavit sworn on November 13, 2025, Abdi identified himself as a key witness in Criminal Case No. MCCR/E2910/2025, in which Ahmed Ali Mohamed faced charges of obtaining goods worth Ksh618,000 through false pretences.
He told the court that officers identified as Siad Mohamed and Abdirahman arrested him on October 9, 2025, before taking him to ATPU headquarters for questioning about the case.
According to his account, the officers pressured him to withdraw from the proceedings and warned that he risked further arrest if he continued participating.
Abdi said he was released without conditions on October 11, 2025, after the prosecution declined to approve an application seeking custodial orders against him.
He also alleged that he was arrested again on October 24, 2025, and threatened over his continued involvement in the matter.
Complaint Lodged With DCI
Following the alleged incidents, Abdi’s lawyers filed a formal complaint with the Directorate of Criminal Investigations on October 25, 2025.
The complaint accused officers attached to the ATPU Nairobi detachment of attempting to frustrate the administration of justice.
Among the requests made was an investigation into the conduct of the named officers, transfer of the relevant police file from ATPU to another investigative unit and an order requiring the officers to appear before the Makadara Law Courts to respond to allegations of witness intimidation.
In his affidavit, Abdi asked the court to intervene and protect witnesses involved in the criminal proceedings, arguing that the alleged threats were intended to undermine the justice process.
Abandoned Vehicle Leads Investigators to Missing Advocate
The latest investigation began after DCI Kilimani investigator PC Dennis Mutua received a report at approximately 6:30pm on November 1, 2026, about an abandoned white Toyota Premio, registration number KDL 356C.
The vehicle had reportedly been found lying on its right side inside a drainage ditch along Muchai Drive.
Mutua told the court that the car was locked, forcing officers to break a passenger-side window to access it. An identification card bearing Abdi’s details was subsequently recovered inside.
About an hour later, Abdi’s brother, Zakaria Abshir, contacted the investigator and confirmed that the vehicle belonged to the missing lawyer.
Zakaria later returned to the scene and reported his brother missing at Kilimani Police Station.
CCTV Footage Raises Questions Over Armed Men
Mutua said investigators had obtained CCTV recordings from a nearby homestead and Echo Network Africa Foundation.
He also told the court that he had visited the scene alongside imaging and acoustics technicians, recorded statements from security guards and other witnesses, and written to Safaricom seeking call data relating to Abdi.
However, questions about the CCTV recordings exposed uncertainty among officers over whether the individuals captured in the footage were carrying firearms.
When Senior Counsel Theuri asked Mutua whether the people seen in the recordings were armed, the investigator said he could not establish that conclusively.
“At that point, I cannot tell if it’s a firearm or not. From the footage, you can see there’s something like probably like a firearm, but I cannot tell if it’s a firearm or not unless I complete my investigation,” Mutua testified.
An ATPU representative identified as Nicholas also said the footage did not clearly establish whether the individuals were carrying guns.
“Not very clear,” he told the court, explaining that he had seen someone grabbing a person as the individual attempted to scale a wall.
When pressed on whether he had seen an object resembling a firearm, he responded: “I don’t want to lie… I did not see, but I saw the arrest.”
High Court to Hear Further Proceedings
The earlier allegations against security officers have added another dimension to the investigation into Abdi’s disappearance, although no connection between the previous complaints and the latest incident has been established.
His family has since sought intervention from the High Court, which has directed security agencies and named officials to account for his whereabouts and produce him before the court, dead or alive.
The allegations of intimidation, the events captured in the CCTV recordings and the circumstances surrounding the lawyer’s disappearance remain under investigation.
The matter is scheduled to proceed before the Milimani High Court on November 5, 2026, at 10:00am.
