Three people were shot dead on the night of Monday, November 24, after police officers dressed in clothes stormed their estate in Nairobi and opened fire.
The three, who were identified as suspected notorious gangsters, were reportedly behind a series of robberies in Mathare Estate where they are believed to have rented houses.
Nairobi County police boss Rashid Yakub confirmed that the three had been terrorising residents in the area after stealing a gun from a police officer.
“The police managed to recover the firearm plus nine rounds of ammunition from the three gangsters,” he told K24 TV.
Witnesses revealed that they were woken up in the middle of the night by gunshots as police engaged the suspects.
One of the residents, identified as Maurice Otieno, told the broadcaster that the push and pull between the thugs and the officers had lasted for an hour.
“It was hard for us to even sleep as the police engaged the gangsters. We were shocked to learn that the three were robbers,” stated the witness.
Otieno's account was corroborated by another resident Abel Wanjala, who confirmed that the shooting occurred in a flat in Huruma Estate.
The robbers had been believed to be behind a spate of robberies in the region after reportedly snatching a gun from a police officer on October 6, 2020.
The incident comes even as unemployment sours across the country due to the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic in the country.
As of September 2020, over 5 million people reportedly lost their jobs after companies went on an unparalleled firing spree with some businesses closing down altogether.
Police have recently associated the increasing crime cases in the country with hardship presented by the perverse economic effects of the pandemic.
