Officers drawn from the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) on Wednesday, April 19, arrested a suspected mastermind and leader of a gang who had been staging attacks in Laikipia and Baringo County.
The police smoked out the man who had been in hiding, after an alert from locals who had received news that he was on the police radar.
Confirming the arrest, Baringo County Commissioner Steven Kutu stated that it was a milestone in restoring the security situation in the North Rift region.
His arrest revealed tactics they used to escape after staging an attack and to evade arrests by the police including making a special shoe from worn-out tires.
The shoe which the bandit had put on when he was arrested was designed to ensure that it did not leave footprints showing the direction they were escaping towards.
It had rubber straps to secure them on their feet and was big enough to cover a big surface area.
When he was arrested, the man was also wearing a sweater belonging to a local high school and was in possession of an AK47 rifle.
His body had marks believed to have been a representation of the number of people he had killed and their place in the society.
The police revealed that the man was 22 years old and would face charges for the attacks he had planned and executed.
The gunman is accused of planning an attack on Monday, April 17, where he led over 100 others to raid Kamologon Village in West Pokot County and an earlier attack where they made away with 700 cattle and killed two people.
The incident occurred a day after the Kalenjin Council of Elders dared the Inspector General (IG) of Police Japhet Koome to act on the bandits with the same vigour his team clamped down on Azimio la Umoja protesters.
