Inspector General of Police Hillary Mutyambai has formed a special unit to deal with increased muggings, murders and robbery with violence cases in Nairobi.
The IG was responding to questions on Monday, June 7, during the Engage the IG forum where Kenyans raised concerns over Nairobi insecurity.
Mutyambai noted that the new anti-mugging squad targeted all cases involving those of rowdy boda bodas.
"We have a special anti-mugging squad that handles robbery with violence incidents including the ones that involve Boda boda riders.
"We have been engaging the operators through a sensitization program dubbed Usalama bararbarani (Road safety) on abiding by the rule of law," stated the IG.
The team is well equipped with a special crime prevention unit that deals with homicides.
"We have police officers on patrol 24/7. We also have an elaborate anti-agency team comprised of a special crime prevention unit that deals with homicides. We also encourage members of the public to report to the police should they spot any unusual activity," he added,
Kenyans had raised concerns noting that they were being intimidated and killed by criminals with the most affected neighbourhood being Kitengela in Kajiado County.
Currently, the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) is investigating a case in which Shantel Nzembi, a grade two pupil, was found murdered in Kitengela.
Among the four suspects nabbed in the matter include a boda boda rider.
At the time, the police believe that the rider could be working with a woman who aided in the abduction of the eight-year-old girl and later asked her mother for a ransom of Ksh300,000. The woman has since been arrested.
A report titled 'Boda Boda Motorcycle Transport and Security Challenges in Kenya' confirmed that boda boda related crimes were on the rise across the country's urban centers.
It showed that certain months observed more criminal activities from the operators, specifically; December, April, August and January were singled out as the most prevalent.