Hundreds of residents in Kwa-Mulinge village, Athi River, Machakos county, were in for a rude awakening when they were attacked by more than 100 men, armed with crude weapons, on Sunday night.
In the raid that lasted the better part of the fateful night, scores were injured and properties worth millions of shillings destroyed in the melee.
Several houses, cars and motorbikes were burnt. The locals affirmed that the trouble commenced when the fierce party descended upon them with their lethal weapons.
Attempts to contact police were fruitless since calls to the nearest police station went unanswered.
“We kept on calling the police to rescue us from the attackers, but they failed to answer our calls. The goons kept on terrorizing us the whole night,” lamented Mercy Musyoka, a resident in the village.
Locals believe that the hoodlums were hired to evict them from a disputed piece of land.
They first attacked a shop, which they looted before torching it and then proceeded to a pastor’s house, where they attacked him and his family, leaving them for dead.
The residents claimed that land grabbers were the cause of the attack and asked the government for help.
"We have been living here for more than a decade now. This land was allocated to our fathers by the late Major General Mulinge during the KANU regime and we cannot allow tycoons to take it over,” remarked Rebeccah Muraa, a resident.
Details emerged that they have been receiving threats from a particular tycoon to vacate the land.
The villagers, through their spokesman David Mutuku, insisted to The Standard that the 2000-acre piece of land belonged to them.
“We will fight for it to the end. If the person claiming it has genuine documents, he should go to court and follow the law. Why does he have to destroy our property at night?” wondered Mutuku.
Several locals have been left homeless. A tearful resident recounted how she was left homeless with her children after their house was demolished in the night chaos.
“My house has been demolished and I have been left in the cold with children who cannot go to school under the current circumstances. Our forefathers lived on this piece of land and we are wondering how in a fortnight, a tycoon wants us to vacate our inheritance and just walk away,” Mary Mwikali wondered out aloud.
The villagers have appealed to relevant authorities to intervene and ensure justice prevails.
"Officers from Mlolongo police station are following the matter and the attackers will be arrested," a senior officer, seeking anonymity affirmed.
