Alex Kiprotich in a past photoThe Standard Group Associate Editor, Alex Kiprotich, who was reportedly abducted along the Gilgil–Nakuru road on Tuesday night, was found safe in a thicket in the Masinga area, Machakos County.
Witnesses said Kiprotich looked shaken and appeared injured when he was found on Wednesday morning, hours after the reported incident.
The location was more than 200 kilometres away from where he was reportedly abducted.
His colleagues and family said they received calls from a number and, when they picked up, found Kiprotich on the call.
They had been looking for him overnight. Kiprotich was taken to hospital for check-ups.
Police said they were also informed of the discovery and were investigating the circumstances. The motive of the reported abduction was not immediately known.
A video purporting to capture the incident emerged online, in which a person believed to be Kiprotich could be heard screaming and asking what he had done to be taken away.
This was after a car he and his driver were travelling in was reportedly blocked by individuals who demanded that he get out.
Kiprotich had locked the windows and doors of the car after the vehicle that had blocked them stopped ahead with its hazard lights on.
He was later pulled out of the vehicle and driven away, according to the reported account.
The Standard Group Chief Executive Officer, Chaacha Mwita, called for Kiprotich’s immediate and safe release.
Mwita said Kiprotich was reportedly abducted shortly before 9:20 pm while travelling to Nakuru.
The Standard Group said Tuesday’s incident was the second time Kiprotich had reportedly been targeted within two months.
According to the company, people described as armed men reportedly attempted to take the journalist from his vehicle on June 27, 2026, as he drove to work in Nakuru. The company said Kiprotich managed to get away after locking his vehicle and driving off.
