After Interior CS Kipchumba Murkomen condemned the BBC Eye documentary “Madams: Exposing Kenya’s Child Sex Trade” as an attack on Kenya’s reputation, the BBC defended it as a vital exposé on child exploitation in the country.

In a statement, BBC said the survivors of childhood sexual abuse who contributed to the documentary were interviewed at length by investigators from DCI.

“We note with concern that following the broadcast of the film, survivors of childhood sexual abuse who contributed to the film were interviewed at length by investigators from the Kenya Directorate of Criminal Investigations without the presence of legal representation. There has also been a debate on the investigation in the Kenyan parliament.”

BBC added that none of the contributors in the documentary were paid, and the survivors who shared their experiences were over 18.

“For clarity, none of the contributors featured in this film were paid, offered payment or ‘coached’ in any way. As clearly stated in the film, the survivors of abuse who were interviewed were all over 18 and recounted experiences of abuse that occurred when they were underage. We are thankful to the survivors for their brave contributions.”

During a press briefing on Wednesday August 13, 2025, Murkomen dismissed the documentary’s findings, claiming its premise was fundamentally flawed.

He alleged that the BBC team enticed some of the girls interviewed with promises of sponsorship, leading them to falsify their ages to participate.

“The documentary failed to reach the intended purpose due to falsified information from several interviewees,” Murkomen stated.

While the documentary has sparked public outrage and led to formal investigations, Murkomen’s focus shifted to the journalists themselves.

He issued a stern warning, indicating that police would take action against them.

“Our Investigations have established that the BBC team primarily sought underage girls involved in sex work. However, some of the girls falsified their age to qualify for the promised sponsorship by the BBC team,” he elaborated, adding that authorities are now tracing witnesses and scrutinizing financial records and call data.

“As detailed in the film, we originally handed the evidence gathered during the investigation to the Kenya police in March 2025 in which perpetrators of crimes against children were clearly identified, as were the victims who were in need of urgent assistance,” BBC concluded.