A habeas corpus application has been filed at the High Court seeking the immediate production of Nairobi lawyer Abshir Ahmedsadak Abdi, who is alleged to have been abducted on October 31, 2026.
The application seeks orders compelling security agencies to produce the advocate before the Milimani High Court Criminal Duty Court within 24 hours, alongside the original warrant or order authorising his detention, if any.
The applicants are also seeking conservatory orders restraining the respondents from arresting, detaining or continuing to hold Abdi without the court’s authorisation. They further want an order directing his unconditional release upon being presented before the court.
The application is supported by an affidavit sworn by Zakaria Abshir, the missing lawyer’s brother, who identifies Abdi as an Advocate of the High Court practising at Abshir & Njagi Advocates in Kilimani.
According to the affidavit, Abdi informed his brother on October 31 that he would be attending a friend’s wedding in Kilimani. That was reportedly the last communication the family received from him before his mobile phones went off the following morning.
On November 1, the family allegedly received a call from a Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) officer based at Kilimani Police Station informing them that Abdi’s vehicle, registration number KDL 356C, had been discovered abandoned along Muchai Road, off Ngong Road, near the Association of Kenya Insurers offices.
The vehicle, a white car, reportedly had visible scratches and dents.
The affidavit further claims that members of the public told police they had witnessed the vehicle being pursued by two cars, a black Prado TX and a black double-cab vehicle.
The occupants of the two vehicles were allegedly dressed in tactical combat uniforms, wore bulletproof vests and openly displayed firearms.
Witnesses reportedly saw the armed individuals intercept the white vehicle, arrest its occupant and forcibly drag him into the Land Cruiser before driving away.
The family describes the alleged abduction as a meticulously orchestrated operation, adding that a missing-person report was subsequently filed at Kilimani Police Station under OB Number 55/1/11/2026.
In the court papers, the applicants link Abdi’s disappearance to a contentious criminal case pending before the Makadara Law Courts, MCCR/E2910/2025, Republic v Ahmed Ali Mohamed, in which the advocate is listed as a witness.
They allege that officers drawn from the National Intelligence Service (NIS), DCI, Counter Terrorism Bureau and Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) had previously threatened the complainant and Abdi with abduction and death unless they withdrew the case.
The affidavit also recounts an alleged previous arrest on October 9, 2025, when Abdi was reportedly apprehended by officers from the Counter Terrorism Bureau, NIS and Directorate of Military Intelligence.
He was subsequently released unconditionally after the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) reportedly declined to approve custodial orders.
The family further claims that a complaint letter concerning the incident was lodged with oversight agencies on October 25, 2025.
Among the additional orders sought, the applicants want the court to compel the preservation and production of CCTV footage, Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) records, toll records, mobile network data, border movement records and motor vehicle tracking information covering Muchai Road and its surrounding areas from October 31, 2026.
They are also seeking orders directing the second and third interested parties to undertake independent investigations into the alleged abduction and submit a report to the court within 14 days.
The family is now asking the High Court to intervene urgently, establish Abdi’s whereabouts and secure his production before the court.
