Assistant Chief Caught Trying To Process Kenyan IDs For Terror Suspects

Detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations' (DCI) Anti-Terror Police Unit (ATPU) drawn from the detachment in Mandera County have arrested an assistant chief.

DCI in a statement on Thursday, February 20 revealed that the official was unlawfully assisting in the registration of Kenyan identification documents for two foreign nationals with suspected ties to terrorism.

"Anti-terrorism detectives drawn from the Mandera detachment have arrested Yussuf Maalim Issak, the Assistant Chief of Bula power sub-location in Mandera Township in connection with his involvement in an attempted and illegal processing of Kenyan IDs in favour of two foreign nationals cum terror suspects namely Isack Mohammed Abdi and Noor Yakub Ali," stated DCI in part.

The administrator was suspected to have facilitated the procurement of an acknowledgement for registration slip /ID waiting card for the terror suspects.

A chief's office in Mandera South. /NG-CDF MANDERA SOUTH CONSTITUENCY

On their part, they were arrested while planning the abduction of a team of foreign nationals engaged in the construction of a sewer line in Mandera town.

"The assistant chief has been processed with the detectives and other security agencies working tirelessly to ensure that the residents of Mandera and all working within the town and its environs remain safe and secure and they undertake their day-to-day activities," added the DCI.

The two suspects were arrested and linked to the nefarious Al Shabaab terror group. One of them attempted to sneak into Kenya from Somalia.

In a statement, DCI revealed on Tuesday, February 18 that the duo had planned the abduction of a team of foreign nationals working at a sewer line construction site within Mandera township.

On keen scrutiny and thorough interrogation, it was discovered that the suspect was to pay Ksh100,000 to his local associate, who would assist in the abduction exercise. This was before he and another suspect facilitated the to-be victims' movement to El-ade at a hefty fee of Ksh300,000.

DCI went on to reveal that as a result, another operation was conducted early on Tuesday morning, where the suspect was cornered and arrested at the Metameta area within Mandera township by a multi-agency security team.

The arrest came more than two weeks after five chiefs were kidnapped by suspected Al Shabaab terrorists while heading towards Elwak. They were hijacked between Bamba Owla and Ires Suki. A joint security team was deployed to pursue the abductors.

On Tuesday, February 4, President William Ruto demanded the release of the five chiefs, calling out members of the terror group for resorting to scare tactics owing to the Kenyan government's hard stance in the war on terror.

A day after that, the very same President controversially ended a 60-year-old vetting requirement and allowed residents of border counties to acquire national Identity (ID) cards. This was done via the signing of a proclamation that waived the requirements for certain citizens from the border counties of the Northeastern region to be vetted before obtaining identification documents.

The 60-year-old vetting requirement, which largely impacted Somali Kenyans and other regional communities, had long faced criticism as systemic discrimination, subjecting residents to extra scrutiny when applying for national IDs.