Africa

‘Struggling to be alive’: Kenyan activist speaks of ‘sexual torture’ in Tanzania

Published

1 year ago

June 3, 2025

‘Struggling to be alive’: Kenyan activist speaks of ‘sexual torture’ in Tanzania

A Kenyan activist has told the BBC that he is “struggling to be alive” after allegedly being sexually tortured in detention in Tanzania last month.

Boniface Mwangi said he had decided to speak despite the “shame and guilt of being sodomised with all manner of things”.

Mwangi said he was held in Tanzania after going to the country to show solidarity with detained opposition politician Tundu Lissu.

At a press conference in Kenya’s capital, Mwangi tearfully claimed that he was stripped naked, hung upside down, beaten on his feet and sexually assaulted while detained.

The police chief in Tanzania’s main city of Dar es Salaam disputed Mwangi’s account and told the BBC they were “opinions” and “hearsay” coming from activists.

“If they were here, I would engage them, I would ask them what are they saying, what do they mean… In law, those things are called hearsay or hearsay evidence,” Jumanne Muliro told the BBC.

He said Mwangi should make a report to the authorities for investigation.

Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s government has been accused by rights groups of becoming increasingly repressive in the run-up to October’s presidential and parliamentary elections.

Regional rights groups have called for an investigation, and Amnesty International said Tanzanian authorities should hold to account those responsible for the “inhuman” treatment.

Mwangi said he was held by Tanzanian authorities for several days along with Ugandan activist Agather Atuhaire, who had earlier also spoken of being raped in detention.

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She attended the press conference in Nairobi on Monday, where Mwangi described his sexual assault in graphic detail.

He said his torturers would sexually assault him and tell him to say “asante” (thank you in the Swahili language) to their president.

Mwangi added that the officers told him they were filming everything and would leak the footage if he spoke about what he had gone through.

Mwangi told the BBC Newsday programme that the torture had left him in mental anguish.

“You have a lot of nightmares, you have a lot of thoughts, and you’re alone in the dark, and you’re thinking you’re going to get killed. So that entire mental anguish lives with you,” he said.

Mwangi said he wanted his medical records be made public so that “what happened to me should never happen to anyone else”.

“I have wounds all over my body, I have wounds on my private parts, I have wounds on my feet, I have two broken toes, I have fractures… So I’m still struggling”.

Mwangi and Atuhaire were among several activists who travelled to Tanzania two weeks ago in solidarity with Lissu who was appearing in court on treason charges that he denies.

He has been demanding sweeping changes, saying current laws do not allow for free and fair polls, which the government denies.

Lissu was arrested on 9 April following his rallying call of “no reforms, no election”.

Mwangi told the BBC that their visit to Tanzania was to highlight Lissu’s “sham case”, adding that this “wasn’t taken lightly” by the authorities.

President Hassan warned at the time that she would not allow activists from neighbouring countries to “meddle” in Tanzania’s affairs.

The whereabouts of Mwangi and Atuhaire were unknown while they were being held, sparking widespread condemnation.

Mwangi said his “abduction” was shocking in how brazen it was as he had been “picked from a very prominent hotel”.

“So having been abducted during broad daylight and never knowing where I was, and I was still tortured, means that the Tanzanian government doesn’t care about what people think about it,” he told the BBC.

Earlier, Atuhaire said that despite Uganda being “very dictatorial”, she did not imagine she “would find a worse foreign country, a worse government”.

Mwangi said their experience showed “how broken” countries in East Africa were.

“So it makes me more of a pan-African in this fight,” he told the BBC.

The US Department of State’s Bureau of Africa Affairs previously said it was deeply concerned by the reports of the two activists’ mistreatment, noting that Atuhaire had been recognised by the department “in 2024 as an International Women of Courage Awardee”.

Other activists, including Kenya’s former Justice Minister Martha Karua and former Chief Justice Willy Mutunga were blocked from entering and were deported from the international airport in Dar es Salaam.

Additional reporting by Munira Hussein in Dar es Salaam.

‘Struggling to be alive’: Kenyan activist speaks of ‘sexual torture’ in Tanzania

BBC

Related Topics:Kenyan activist sexual torture Tanzania

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Africa

FBI Raids Ghana Scam Centre, Detains Over 130 in $10m Fraud Probe

Published

2 days ago

October 8, 2026

Trends Admin

FBI Raids Ghana Scam Centre, Detains Over 130 in $10m Fraud Probe

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has raided a suspected scam centre in Ghana, detaining more than 130 people and uncovering nearly $10 million in identified losses linked to an international fraud operation targeting Americans.

The operation, carried out under the FBI’s Operation Blackout, also led to the seizure of more than 300 electronic devices, while investigators identified 89 victims, FBI Director Kash Patel said.

Patel announced the operation on Thursday, saying the Ghana raid was part of the FBI’s wider campaign against transnational scam networks operating through so-called scam compounds.

However, the FBI has not classified everyone detained as a suspected fraudster.

Patel specifically said the more than 130 people arrested or detained included victims who are expected to be repatriated to their home countries, suggesting that some people found at the facility may have been trafficked into the operation rather than involved in running the scams.

The FBI has not disclosed the exact location of the Ghana operation, the identities or nationalities of those detained, or the Ghanaian agencies that participated in the raid.

It also remains unclear how many of those detained will face criminal charges in Ghana or possible prosecution or extradition proceedings in the United States.

Patel said the investigation was continuing, warning that scam compounds are increasingly being used to target American citizens and inflict substantial financial losses.

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The Ghana operation is the latest action under Operation Blackout, which the FBI says is targeting organised fraud networks around the world.

According to Patel, the broader operation has so far resulted in roughly $17 billion in assets seized, hundreds of alleged scammers arrested and thousands of trafficked workers freed.

More than 10,000 Americans have also reportedly been warned before losing money, with the FBI estimating that about $670 million in losses were prevented.

The Ghana raid comes amid growing concern over the international expansion of online fraud and scam compounds, with law-enforcement agencies increasingly reporting links between cyber-enabled fraud and human trafficking.

In such operations, workers can be recruited through false employment offers and allegedly transported or coerced into participating in online fraud against victims in other countries.

Ghana has previously cooperated with U.S. authorities in investigations involving transnational fraud.

In July 2026, Ghanaian national Frederick Kumi, also known as Abu Trica, was extradited to the United States after being arrested in Ghana in December 2025. U.S. prosecutors accused him of participating in a romance-fraud network that allegedly targeted more than 80 elderly Americans and caused losses exceeding $8 million.

The extradition involved cooperation between Ghanaian authorities and several U.S. and Ghanaian law-enforcement bodies, including the FBI’s Legal Attaché Office in Accra.

The latest FBI operation also comes as international enforcement agencies increase pressure on scam networks operating outside traditional fraud hotspots in Southeast Asia.

The FBI has not released further details about the Ghana raid, and the investigation remains ongoing.

The bureau is expected to provide additional information as investigators establish the roles of those detained and determine which individuals, if any, will face prosecution.

Those accused of criminal offences are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.

FBI Raids Ghana Scam Centre, Detains Over 130 in $10m Fraud Probe

Africa

Zimbabwe Tycoon Wicknell Chivayo, Wife Among Six Killed in Helicopter Crash

Published

1 week ago

October 1, 2026

Trends Admin

Zimbabwe Tycoon Wicknell Chivayo, Wife Among Six Killed in Helicopter Crash

Zimbabwean businessman Wicknell Chivayo and his wife, Lucy Muteke, have been killed in a helicopter crash that claimed six lives in Marondera Rural, east of the Zimbabwean capital, Harare.

The crash occurred at about 5pm local time on Wednesday, September 30, 2026, with the helicopter carrying six people, including Chivayo, his wife and two pilots.

Family spokesperson Herbert Chivayo confirmed the deaths, while Zimbabwean authorities said there were no survivors.

The aircraft came down in the Marondera area, about 72 kilometres east of Harare, before catching fire. Emergency responders and investigators were deployed to the scene after the crash.

Zimbabwean aviation authorities said preliminary information indicated that fuel spilled after the impact before a fire broke out. However, officials stressed that the information did not establish what caused the helicopter to crash.

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The cause of the crash remains under investigation, with aviation officials and other investigators examining the wreckage and circumstances surrounding the incident.

Police said the bodies were badly burned in the post-crash fire, making formal identification necessary. Forensic specialists were subsequently involved in the identification and investigation process.

Chivayo, 43, was one of Zimbabwe’s most prominent and publicly visible businessmen. He was known for his high-profile lifestyle, philanthropy and extensive social-media presence, where he frequently displayed luxury cars, properties and other expensive possessions.

He also maintained close links with senior political figures in Zimbabwe, including President Emmerson Mnangagwa.

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His business activities and political connections had previously attracted public scrutiny, including allegations relating to government contracts and political financing. Chivayo denied wrongdoing in connection with such allegations.

News of his death triggered reactions across the region, with political and business figures expressing condolences to his family.

Kenyan President William Ruto was among those who mourned Chivayo, describing the Zimbabwean businessman as a friend.

The crash has generated significant attention in Zimbabwe because of Chivayo’s prominence and his public profile, but authorities have not attributed the accident to any specific mechanical, weather or human factor.

Investigators are expected to examine the aircraft, flight circumstances, weather conditions, pilot actions and other available evidence as they work to determine what caused the fatal helicopter crash.

Authorities have not announced a final finding on the cause of the accident.

Zimbabwe Tycoon Wicknell Chivayo, Wife Among Six Killed in Helicopter Crash

Africa

South Africa: 27 Killed, 26 Injured in Separate Mass Shootings

Published

2 weeks ago

September 27, 2026

Trends Admin

South Africa: 27 Killed, 26 Injured in Separate Mass Shootings

At least 27 people have been killed and 26 others injured in two separate mass shootings in South Africa, with police launching investigations and manhunts for the attackers.

The shootings occurred within hours of each other in Gauteng and Western Cape provinces, with the first attack reported at a tavern in Wedela, southwest of Johannesburg, on Saturday night, followed by another shooting at an entertainment venue in Lwandle, near Cape Town, in the early hours of Sunday.

In Wedela, police said gunmen opened fire on patrons at a tavern at about 9:30 p.m. on Saturday.

The South African Police Service (SAPS) said 17 people were killed in the attack, comprising 13 men and four women.

At least 15 people were also injured and taken to medical facilities for treatment.

According to the police, the attackers were armed with AK-47 rifles and pistols. They allegedly opened fire on people outside the tavern before entering the premises and continuing the shooting.

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The gunmen also reportedly searched some patrons and took their mobile phones before escaping in two unidentified vehicles.

Police have launched a manhunt for the suspects, while investigations are ongoing to establish the motive for the attack and identify those responsible.

A few hours later, another shooting occurred at an entertainment venue in Lwandle, a township near Cape Town.

Police said gunmen entered the venue, which also operates as a shisanyama, a popular South African establishment serving grilled meat, at about 1:46 a.m. on Sunday and opened fire on people inside.

The attack left 10 people dead and 11 others injured.

Five victims reportedly died at the scene, while five others later died after being taken to medical facilities.

Western Cape police commissioner Lieutenant General Sizakhele Dyantyi established a multidisciplinary investigative team led by serious violent crime detectives to investigate the attack and pursue the perpetrators.

No arrests had been announced in connection with either shooting at the time of the latest police updates.

The two incidents came days after another deadly shooting in KwaMakhutha, south of Durban, where 11 people were killed and three others injured at a house party.

The KwaZulu-Natal attack occurred on Tuesday night, September 22, according to police.

Authorities said some of the victims were known to Crime Intelligence in connection with alleged illegal activities, although investigators had not established a definitive motive. Police said a possible conflict between rival groups was among the lines of inquiry.

The three shootings have renewed concerns over gun violence in South Africa, particularly deadly attacks involving groups of armed suspects.

However, authorities have not established any connection between the shootings in Wedela, Lwandle and KwaMakhutha. Investigations into the individual incidents remain ongoing.