Officers from the Directorate of Public Prosecution (ODPP) have launched investigations on a police officer accused of recruiting youths into the Al-Shabaab militant group.
A court in Garsen, Tana River County, gave ODPP the green light to probe the officer and also ordered the Anti-Terrorist Police Unit (ATPU) to detain him for a fortnight.
"The court today allowed a prosecution application seeking to have a police officer detained for 14 days pending completion of the investigation," read a statement by the ODPP in part.
Lead prosecutor, Mercy Chomba, argued that the suspect contravened Section 13(a) of the Prevention of Terrorism Act No. 30 of 2012 by reportedly connecting recruits with a terrorist group.
ODPP accused the officer of luring a section of gullible youths in Tana River County who are said to have disappeared to join the dreaded militia.
It added that it had gathered credible information on the suspect's active participation in the recruitment process.
A search conducted at the homestead of the officer, which is located within Garsen Police Station, led to the discovery of two mobile phones suspected to have been used to facilitate the whole process of recruitment.
The phones will be forwarded to the ATPU unit to liaise with its forensic counterparts to analyse and extract data that will be used as evidence in court.
Meanwhile, Mercy Chomba, the prosecution counsel, stated that the investigations that will be carried out for two weeks will unravel more information in the case.
A team of officers will visit the relatives and families of the youths who disappeared to record statements. Chomba added that the accused police will also tag along to assist detectives with investigations.
Detectives will then table a report before the court and allow the defence to counter the allegations.
The case will be mentioned on December 17 this year.
