Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen has issued a fresh call to county and regional officers in bandit-prone areas, hours after a Grade 7 girl who was recently kidnapped was found safe.
In a statement on Sunday, June 8, Murkomen confirmed the girl had been located and was on course to reunite with her family, two days after her abduction.
“I am pleased to report that the teenage girl kidnapped in Yatya, Baringo North Sub-County, three days ago has been found safe and is on her way to be reunited with her family,” he announced.
In a bid to quell escalating tensions between two warring factions, the CS further directed county and regional officers to convene a peace dialogue involving residents from both Baringo North and Tiaty Central to address the root cause of insecurity in the region.
In addition, the CS extended the government's psychosocial support to the girl, as he offered to take them to a boarding school outside their home sub-county, where they will feel safer after their harrowing ordeal.
"Considering the trauma that the girl and her brother (who escaped the kidnappers earlier) underwent, we have arranged for psychosocial support for them and if the family allows, we have offered to take them to a boarding school outside their home Sub-County where they will feel safe and at peace to pursue their education," Murkomen's statement added.
The Grade 7 pupil was taken by unknown persons on the afternoon of Friday, June 6, in the insecurity-prone Baringo North as they were preparing for an afternoon meal at home.
Witnesses at the time reported that two armed men accosted the girl and a Grade 5 boy and demanded that they go with them. The two pupils were in the company of a three-year-old.
Hours after the kidnapping, witnesses reported to have spotted the bandits with the girl in Riong'o, Tiaty East, roughly 50 kilometres away from where the pupils were taken.
Murkomen attributed the girl's swift rescue to the coordinated efforts of security teams at the National, Regional and Local levels.
The CS further named Naudo Location Chief as a key figure in the girl's rescue, as he was integral in mobilising local elders and security officers, including National Police Reservists (NPRs).
He also confirmed that the government were hot on the heels of perpetrators to bring them to justice.
