Three traffic officers, including an Inspector of Police, were on Saturday, December 27, nabbed by detectives from the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission for allegedly soliciting and receiving bribes from motorists.
The three officers were nabbed after an operation by EACC officers along the busy Kisumu-Kisii Highway at Sondu.
EACC, in a statement on Saturday, December 27, said that the arrest followed multiple complaints from motorists and road users regarding increased extortion by the traffic officers and others operating along the highway.
This prompted the EACC officers to conduct an operation to determine what was happening.
According to the statement, the suspects were caught while demanding bribes from road users without conducting any vehicle inspections or enforcing traffic regulations.
"Upon arrest, the officers were found in possession of cash in various denominations, suspected to be proceeds of corruption," EACC stated.
The suspects were first processed at the commission's central Nyanza regional office in Kisumu before they were escorted to Kisumu Railways and Ports Police Station, where they were booked pending investigations.
The arrest comes after two other traffic officers were arrested for allegedly extorting and demanding bribes from motorists along the Likoni-Lungalunga road on Wednesday, December 24, raising questions about the integrity of the law enforcers.
Also, along the Nairobi-Nyeri-Embu Highway recently, four officers were arrested following an undercover operation prompted by public complaints about rampant extortion.
The arrests come at a time when road travel has significantly increased as Kenyans travel to various destinations to celebrate the Christmas and New Year holidays.
The commission has, in late 2025, been conducting high-profile operations leading to the arrest of multiple police officers, especially those on the road, for alleged bribery and extortion.n
The commission states that it continues to scale up intelligence gathering and surveillance targeting essential public services and sectors prone to corruption, with the aim of promoting integrity and accountability in public service, reaffirming its efforts to combat corruption, particularly within the police service.
The Commission also reiterated its commitment to enforcing anti-corruption laws, urging members of the public to report any incidents of corruption through its established reporting channels.
Officers have frequently targeted the Kisii–Kisumu highway, especially during the festive season, due to the high volume of travellers, with many heading home for Christmas, while others travel to Kisumu for the holidays. Increased traffic has often been exploited by some officers, who solicit bribes from drivers over overspeeding and carrying excess passengers.
