A Kenyan court on Monday approved charges [Nairobi Times report] against four police officers for the murder of human rights lawyer Willie Kimani. The bodies of Kimani, his client Josphat Mwenda, and their taxi driver Joseph Muiruri showed [The Star report] signs of torture when they were discovered earlier this month.The International Justice Mission (IJM) [advocacy website], Kimani’s employer, has stated [The Star report] that it believes there are more perpetrators involved in the deaths. The four officers from Kenya’s Administration Police [official website] have denied [Daily Nation report] the charges. The accused are set [Capital News report] to appear in court on August 16 to apply for bail, giving the prosecution a month to prepare statements from 45 witnesses.

The murders have outraged the international and domestic communities and have added to the list of police abuses in recent months. Earlier this week, US Democrats in Congress called [JURIST report] for hearings in the wake of police shootings of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, two black men. This month, Human Rights Watch (HRW) released [JURIST report] a report saying extrajudicial killings by police threaten the over-all security in Rio de Janeiro ahead of the summer Olympics. A statement by 34 international human rights organizations condemned [AI report] the murders and hundreds have taken to the streets of Nairobi to protest [JURIST report] extrajudicial killings in the capital. Western governments who provide financial support to Kenya have also expressed their concern over the murders and are urging the country to reform and comply with international human rights standards.