A Catholic priest from Kikuyu, Kiambu County, found himself stranded after unidentified individuals broke into his residence and severely damaged two of his cars.
During the nighttime incident, the culprits stole the headlights and other spare parts from the vehicles, also shattering some of the windows.
Local residents who spoke to journalists after the robbery reported that the criminals gained entry to the house using a wooden ladder positioned against the wall of the priest's home.
Congregants from the priest's church condemned the incident and called for prompt investigations into the matter.
According to one of the congregants, the church incurred losses of at least Ksh400,000 due to the vandalism.
Per his account, the incident, unfortunately, was not an isolated case, as several residents had previously reported similar cases of thugs breaking into their homes and vandalising vehicles at night to steal spare parts.
"Vandalism cases in Kirwa have been on the rise, a few days ago at least five houses were broken into and cars vandalised," a resident narrated.
The locals, therefore called on the government to crack down on illegal spare part dealers who are fueling the unlawful business.
Following the incident, police officers were deployed to the scene to investigate the matter and collect evidence.
In April, Transport Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen launched a crackdown on all illegal spare parts dealers following increased accidents in different parts of the country.
Murkomen directed the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) to deal with the proliferation of substandard products in the automotive industry.
"It has been noted that most of the crashes were caused by tyre bursts, brake failure while on high speed, and crashing into vehicles with substandard retroreflective strips thus affecting visibility in the road," the CS stated.
