A warden at Kamiti Maximum Security Prison was arrested alongside three other civilians over the kidnapping of a 20-yer-old man.
Reports by the Standard indicated that the trio posed as sleuths from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) before kidnapping the man and asking for ransom from his family.
The victim's mother sent Ksh5,000 after the kidnappers threatened to kill her son. They also ordered her to send the funds to four different mobile numbers.
The family reported the matter to Kasarani Police station where cops kickstarted investigations into the victim's disappearance.
Police established who the owner of the vehicle was after getting data from the National Transport Safety Authority (NTSA), according to Kasarani sub-County police commander Peter Mwanzo.
Officers began tracking their whereabouts and the gang abandoned the victim in Mwihoko but police would later arrest them at Kamiti road and the warden was found with a pair of handcuffs.
Cases of kidnappings have been rampant in the country. Arguably 2020 and 2021, could rival 2017 as the darkest year in the country when countless stories of kidnappings grabbed national headlines.
In Kenya, abductions are becoming pervasive and their many negative effects on the country's social and economic fabric can be felt at different tiers of public life.
In 2017 Kenya recorded 138 kidnappings incidents were reported, translating to an abduction incident every 2 and a half days.
But in 2018 the National Police Service (NPS) failed to publish its annual crime report, and the information gap has proven to be a challenge.
Surprisingly, kidnapping was not mentioned in the entire NPS report, with ‘other offences against persons’ the category that could have included that particular crime.
As per the NPS 2018 Annual Crime Report, there were 22,515 reported incidents tagged under the ‘other offences against persons’ category in 2017.
In the Kenya 2020 Crime & Safety Report, kidnapping was highlighted as a major threat with warnings issued for both residents and non-residents to remain vigilant.
“Violent and sometimes fatal criminal attacks, including some home invasions, burglaries, armed carjackings, and kidnappings can occur at any time and in any location,
“Criminals will not hesitate to shoot a victim who is uncooperative, or who may appear to hesitate before complying with their assailant,” the report reads in part.
