A saloon car packed with marijuana was involved in a grisly accident at Mtito Andei along Mombasa Road on the morning of Tuesday, March 10.
The vehicle rammed into a fuel tanker and burst into flames moments later.
Speaking to Kenyans.co.ke, Mtito Andei OCS Ezra Sambu revealed that the driver of the saloon car sustained serious injuries and was recuperating in hospital.
The tanker driver, however, escaped unhurt with his vehicle sustaining minimal damage. The accident took place near the popular Taleh Hotel located in Mtito Andei.
Sambu revealed that investigations were ongoing even as they waited for the main suspect to recover.
"We received the report early in the morning. The driver of the saloon car was rushed to hospital and he is in critical condition.
"We hope he makes a quick recovery. Investigations are ongoing and we will be looking to establish where he got the marijuana from and where it was he was transporting it.
"As soon as he is recovered we will be arraigning him in court and he will be charged," Sambu revealed.
Possession of marijuana in Kenya attracts harsh sentences which vary depending on whether the drugs were meant for one's personal use or for distribution on a larger scale.
If the court decides that the offender only had the marijuana for their own personal use, they may be given a prison sentence of ten years or less.
If the court decides, however, that the marijuana was for sale, one faces a prison sentence of 20 years to life. In both cases, one may also face hefty fines.
In August 2016, for instance, Samuel Mogoi Nyang'au from Kisii County was hit with a ten-year sentence after being found with 17 stick rolls of bhang with a street value of Ksh350.
Nyang'au filed an appeal on March 24, 2017 arguing that the sentence handed down to him was harsh, further requesting that he be allowed to re-unite with his family as he is the bread-winner.
