Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang'i has announced changes in the National Police Services (NPS) amid insecurity concerns in Nakuru county.
In the latest min-reshuffle, announced on Wednesday, June 29, Matiang'i moved Kasarani Officer Commanding Police Division (OCPD) Peter Mwanzo to Nakuru to contain the situation in the region after a spate of gang-attacks.
Following the transfer, Mwanzo has been promoted to the rank of County Commander.
Mwanzo will take over from Beatrice Kiraguri who has been serving as Nakuru County Commander.
Despite reports indicating that he lost Ksh597 through an online syndicate, Mwanzo has been steadfast in ensuring that Kasarani remains criminal free.
The cop told the court that on Monday, May 23, 2022, he was allegedly targeted by a sim swap syndicate that wiped clean his accounts.
"Within less than 12 hours, a whopping Ksh597,100 had been transferred from my bank account and sent to an unknown phone number, and withdrawn in Mulot, Bomet county. How this happened is a miracle," he told court.
"The private number called several but l did not pick. I put my phone on flight mode to avoid disturbance. Upon turning on the phone it had no network," Mwanzo informed the court.
Before the reshuffle, Matiang'i had held a series of meetings with leaders from the region with the aim of addressing the escalating insecurity issues.
"Following an update from security teams on the success of the ongoing operations to arrest members of the 'Confirm' gang, we met with community and religious leaders from Nakuru and assured them of sustained government pressure to end the menacing gang," Matiang'i stated.
The CS was accompanied by General Service Unit (GSU) Commandant, David Kanja, Inspector General of Police, Hillary Mutyambai and Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) George Kinoti.
The top security officials noted that the operation will continue until the area becomes a crime-free zone.
"We cannot allow gangs to rule the city as they find women in their houses to kill them, their leaders have been profiled and they will be pursued to the last," Matiang'i announced.
Nakuru has experienced a series of attacks targeting women in their homes in Mawanga Estate in Bahati Constituency. The city has also been grappling with organised crimes.
At least two politicians have been grilled and more than 100 suspects arrested, with a cache of crude weapons seized.
