Police Officer Arrested Aiding City Robberies

A recent spate of robberies in Mombasa has been linked to a wayward constable. 

The police officer, who was arrested in Bamburi has been held on charges of colluding with criminal gangs.

The officer hired and registered three vehicles under his name which were subsequently used in the commission of crimes at the coast.

Left to right: Mombasa County AP boss Nelson Masengeli, Police Commander Johnston Ipara and County Commissioner Evans Achoki during Mashujaa Day celebrations on October 20, 2018.

Along with the constable, officers also arrested two gang members who were linked to the robberies. The accusations trailing the suspects hold that they stole a total of Ksh 910, 000 on two separate occasions.

A police report quoted by the Nation on February 15, 2020, provided that the criminals had stolen Ksh 550,000 from a woman in Mombasa town and another Ksh 360,000 from Nyali.

Further details from the police report highlight that CCTV footage captured two of the vehicles used by the criminals trailing their targets from the bank.

The case, which is the first to hold the limelight in 2020, is reminiscent of a report released by the Standard on October 6, 2019 stating that 62 officers are linked to crime every month.

The statistics for 2019 showed that 625 cases of police turned-criminals were reported in the 10 months preceding the report, a spike from the 488 cases of 2018.

The statistics provided painted a picture of police taking part in a wide range of criminal activities, from the more kosher acceptance of Ksh 50 bribes to the gradual degeneration to murder, robberies, extortion, kidnapping, gunrunning and drug trafficking.

Police spokesperson Charles Owino speaking to journalists at Vigilance House in Nairobi on November 29, 2015.

The police spokesperson, Charles Owino. expressed his own disappointment at the state of affairs following the cases that tarnished the face of the police in 2019.

"It’s true more incidents linking police officers have been reported lately. All is not lost as we are dealing with the situation firmly." 

A government report released in 2016 revealed that more than a third of all crimes reported by the police involved officers.



 

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