Traffic along the busy Mombasa - Malindi highway was crippled on Tuesday following violent protests by residents.
Reports on the ground revealed that scores of citizens were injured following a violent confrontation between residents of Mtwapa luxury, Kilifi County, and police officers on Tuesday over land grabbing allegations.
Cars plying the route were forced to seek alternative means to get to their various destinations as protestors burnt tyres and set up boulders on the highway.
The vibrant town of Mtwapa was the scene of the skirmishes that brought business to a standstill for the better part of the day, with the air rife with teargas.
Reports by Citizen Digital revealed that the residents were up in arms over a land-grabbing tycoon who is reportedly in collusion with the local police officers.
A Member of the County Assembly (MCA) was allegedly taken into custody and detained at the Mtwapa Base Police Station.
The unidentified MCA is believed to have organized the protests against the move to evict the local residents and squatters from their ancestral lands.
Police had earlier during the day gone on to exercise orders that were reportedly issued by a businessman to evict squatters from a 2-acre piece of land he claimed was his.
However, a local resident speaking on NTV revealed that some of the residents had lived on the contested parcel of land for over 50 years.
He went on to add that the police had opened fire on the unarmed civilians and that the injured had been rushed to the hospital.
In retaliation, the angry youth set ablaze a house in Mtwapa which they claimed belonged to an owner was working with a powerful individual to grab their land, forcing police officers were to use their riot shields, plates and plastic tins to scoop sand to combat the fire.
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