Arshad Sharif shot due to mistaken identity: Kenyan Newspaper Claims...

  Kenya's leading newspaper 'The Star' has claimed that the death of journalist Arshad Sharif was caused by police firing due to mistaken identity. According to The Star, a newspaper published in Kenya's capital, Nairobi, Arshad Sharif was shot in the head by police on Sunday night on the Magadi highway after he and his driver allegedly ran over a Policeman was violated.

 Police told a Kenyan newspaper that Arshad Sharif was on his way to Nairobi from Magadi town when he was stopped at a police checkpoint under the watchful eye of a group of police officers. Magadi is 113 kilometers from Nairobi. Police headquarters told the newspaper that the case has been handed over to the Independent Policing Oversight Authority.

A senior police officer confirmed the shooting to the newspaper and added that a comprehensive statement would be issued later. The officer said that there was an incident of firing which turned out to be a case of mistaken identity involving a journalist. We will release more information later.

According to the police, after the incident of taking a child hostage in Nairobi's Pangani area, the police were called to stop a similar car at the road block in which Arshad Sharif was riding. A few minutes later Arshad Sharif's car reached the bridge and he was stopped and asked to reveal his identity and he allegedly passed through the bridge without stopping.

This led to a brief chase and a shootout in which Arshad Sharif died. Their car overturned and the driver was injured and taken to hospital. The driver later told the police that he and his deceased colleague were developers and were on their way to a site in Magadi. 

The Star is a leading newspaper in Kenya and is owned by Radio Africa Group. Radio Africa Group has six radio stations, one TV station and one newspaper (The Star) across Kenya. In this regard, the Pakistani embassy in Nairobi is in touch with the Kenyan authorities, but no official details have been released by them yet.