A driver and passengers travelling in a matatu were forced to abandon the Public Service Vehicle (PSV) and run away on foot after they were cornered during a police chase.
The National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA), in a statement on Sunday, revealed that the matatu was overloaded when police officers spotted it.
Their attempt to intercept it was, however, futile because the driver diverted the vehicle to an alternative route.
Unfortunately, the route had no exit and the driver, his conductor and passengers were forced to alight and flee on foot to avoid arrest.
"This vehicle was found overloaded and when intercepted by the Police, the driver diverted and took an alternative route. Unknown to him, the route had no exit," read the statement.
"To escape law enforcement, the driver and passengers abandoned the vehicle and ran away. The vehicle was towed to the police station for processing."
A source at NTSA confirmed to Kenyans.co.ke that the incident occurred along Mumias Road in Kakamega County and the matatu was taken to Mumias Police Station.
The vehicle was also found of flouting several traffic rules including operating with an expired license.
"The vehicle had other problems including passengers hanging on the door, operating without an inspection certificate, lacking a service license and the driver did not stop when ordered to," our source stated.
The arrest comes as the authority, in partnership with the National Police Service (NTSA), conducts a countrywide crackdown following a spike in road crashes.
At the end of March, the authority arrested road users including pedestrians who were found flagrantly breaking traffic rules.
The crackdown, which kicked off in the last week of March, was expected to last longer with police officers expected to advise on the charges the perpetrators will face in the court of law.
