Authorities are investigating the death of a police recruit who collapsed and died while undergoing training at the National Police Service Campus, Kiganjo College, in Nyeri County, marking the fourth such fatality within the service since December.
The recruit, identified as Alfas Kimutai Kiptoo, 23, collapsed on the morning of February 6, 2026, while participating in a routine run with fellow trainees at the Kahawa area along the Kiganjo–Kingongo road.
He was rushed to hospital but was pronounced dead on arrival. Police said the family has been informed, and the body moved to the mortuary pending an autopsy to establish the cause of death.
The incident comes barely a week after another police recruit, Cheme Chombo Cheme, died under similar circumstances at the General Service Unit (GSU) Field Campus in Magadi, Kajiado County. Cheme collapsed on January 31, 2026, during training and was initially taken to Magadi Hospital before being referred to Kenyatta National Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival.
With the latest death, the number of recruits who have died during training since joining police colleges in December 2025 has risen to four. Other fatalities were reported at the Kiganjo Campus and the Administration Police Training College (APTC) A-Campus in Embakasi, Nairobi.
On January 18, 2026, a recruit at the Embakasi campus died while undergoing treatment after complaining of chest pain, dizziness, cough and fatigue.
Similar concerns have also emerged within the military. On January 29, 2026, the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) reported that three recruits died after developing medical complications during a routine endurance exercise at the Defence Forces Recruits Training School (DFRTS) in Eldoret, Uasin Gishu County.
“The recruits developed medical complications while participating in a scheduled endurance exercise,” KDF said in a statement at the time.
The string of deaths has raised renewed questions about medical screening, training intensity and emergency response protocols within Kenya’s security training institutions as investigations continue.
