Boniface Mwangi Kariuki, the 22-year-old mask vendor who was shot at point-blank range by a police officer during recent anti-police brutality protests, has been confirmed brain dead.
According to the family's spokesperson, Emily Wanjira, doctors at Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) informed the family that while Kariuki's body organs remain functional, his brain has completely ceased functioning. "The reality is that Boniface Mwangi Kariuki has been confirmed brain dead," Wanjira said during a press briefing outside the hospital on Sunday. "For someone to be officially declared dead, the heartbeat must stop.
His heart is still beating.
We have left it to the doctors to confirm when he is officially gone," she added.
