Stolen Police Gun Recovered In Kakamega Crackdown

Detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) based in Kakamega town had on Tuesday, November 22 recovered a firearm suspected to have been stolen from a police officer. 

In their statement, the Ceska pistol loaded with 15 rounds of 9mm calibre was recovered from three suspects who were holed at a house in Mukumu, Khayega location.

This is following an intensive crackdown mounted by the DCI Western command on criminals and criminal gangs in the area. 

Following the evening raid, Joseph Maina, 22, Dennis Githae, 25, and Stanley Githae, 20, were arrested and household goods suspected to have been stolen in various robbery incidents within Kakamega were recovered. 

The items included laptops, smartphones, television sets, and home theatres among other electronic items and kitchenware.

The arrest of the trio and recovery of the firearm comes hours after another security operation led to the arrest of 14 suspects linked to the infamous "Mbogi La Izraim Territory", a criminal ring that was terrorizing marketeers in Kakamega County, following a two-day resolute operation by security forces to liberate the streets from gangsters and vandals. 

In a surge of crimes that caused the county residents untold panic and terror, a youthful group rose from among their numbers two months ago. Their attacks targeted mostly night guards who watch marketplaces and late-night pubs/

"Surprisingly and to the bewilderment of the police, the gang was stealing nothing from its targets, besides the heinous attacks that left them either dead or mutilated," stated the DCI in part.

Over 10 cases of Murders and Serious Assaults linked to the syndicate were reported on diverse dates between October and November, three of the murders occurring on November 17 and 19, 2022.

In one of the incidents on November 17, 58-yr-old John Mulama - a security guard at Club 2000 within Kambi Somali - was attacked and murdered at his place of work, before his killers proceeded to Amalemba Bus Stage where they also murdered 59-yr-old Festo Iluma, also a watchman at DEE's Pub.

On the night of November 19, the gang advanced its attacks to Mahiakhalo in Bukhungu location, killing 24-yr-old Patrick Kipkosgei, a 5th-year student at Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology (MMUST) in cold blood.

"On the same night, Isaiah Kiprono - a 1st-year student at the same university - survived by the skin of his teeth, when the machete-wielding gang accosted him while opening his house. He braved several cuts as he yelled his lungs out, causing his adversaries to flee," added the DCI.

Informed by the horrifying trend, an intelligence-led crackdown by a joint team of the Kenya Police and DCI officers was launched in the area on Sunday, November 20, where 10 suspected members of the ring were flushed out of their boltholes and escorted to Kakamega police station.

A crowd surrounding a police car. /FILE