Naivasha Member of Parliament Jayne Kihara was dramatically arrested on Thursday by officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) for failing to present herself to detectives. Her apprehension, which was livestreamed from her home in Maraigushu, caused significant tension among Kenyans and political leaders, with Governor Mutahi Kahiga condemning the events and highlighting Kihara's age and health condition.

Following her arrest, MP Kihara was presented at the Milimani Law Courts on Friday, July 18, 2025, where she awaited charges. Initially, she was reportedly held in the court's parking lot in a green Subaru, not booked into the Milimani holding cells. Her lawyer, Ndegwa Njiru, alleged that Kihara was whisked away to an unknown destination at around 8:20 am, leaving her legal team stranded. This dramatic incident momentarily ensued after the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) allegedly declined to approve criminal charges against her, leading to her being driven away from the court's parking lot at approximately 9:30 am.

Photo Credit: The Standard

However, at around 10:20 am, DCI detectives returned Kihara to the court. Her legal team, including Ndegwa Njiru and Wiper Party leader Kalonzo Musyoka, insisted that she be held in the court's basement cells rather than in the Subaru Outback. It was later confirmed by her lawyers that she was indeed detained in the facility's basement cells, despite not being formally presented before a magistrate or taken into custody on Friday.

MP Kihara is facing serious charges of incitement with intent to provoke a breach of the peace, connected to the Saba Saba protests. According to the charge sheet, Kihara was quoted on July 8, 2025, accusing President William Ruto of orchestrating chaos in Naivasha. She allegedly claimed that goons were transported to Naivasha via an NYS bus to Karagita and in trucks to Mai Mahiu. Furthermore, the charge sheet quotes her for alleging police inaction and complicity with the perpetrators, stating, "...police are not doing anything, they didn't try to arrest the goons, we could see in the place goons walking with them..."

Photo Credit: Daily Nation

Kihara's lawyer, C.N Kihara, dismissed the charges as "inconsequential," typically used against "drunk men in the village and not a Member of Parliament serving her third term." The arrest also comes after Kihara failed to respond to a DCI summons regarding remarks allegedly undermining the authority of a senior public official. Politically, Kihara is known as an ally of former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua and has been vocal in efforts to challenge the Kenya Kwanza government, with Kalonzo Musyoka stating that despite the arrest, the agenda to remove President William Ruto from power remains unchanged.