Deported drug lord arrested in Nairobi's Eastleigh area

By Cyrus Ombati

NAIROBI, KENYA: An Ethiopian national who was among drug lords deported last month over involvement in narcotics trafficking has been arrested in Nairobi's Eastleigh area.

Police say Solomon Walde Haulu, 76 sneaked back to the country at undisclosed date and hid in Eastleigh where he was arrested on Thursday night. He had been deported on June 11 for being in Kenya illegally and over accusations of being a drug trafficker.

He was linked to local and international drug trafficking network despite his old age. He also operated a major gang in Nigeria section of Mathare slums, which police say is the main supply point of hard drugs in the city.

According to police, he sneaked back to Kenya from Uganda through the Malaba border and he did not have documents at the time of his arrest.

Haulu was expected in court on friday as police continue with their investigations.

"He seems to have either used an orthodox route here or he hid the documents to avoid being known how he came but we will know," said head of Speacial Crimes Prevention Unit that arrested him following a tip off. He was found in a house next to the one he used to stay before his deportation.

The man is among close to 30 other foreigners who were deported in June for alleged involvement in international crimes. Seven out of theforeigners are believed to be key members of drug cartels operating in Kenya and have in the past been arrested on narcotic offences.

And police are yet to trace the whereabouts of a Nigerian national who sneaked back days after he was too deported.

An officer based at the Namanga border post, Edward Kabiu Njau, was charged in court for unlawfully assisting Eneke Chimenze to enter the country illegally on July 9. Mr Chimenze had been deported together with the controversial Nigerian drug dealer Anthony Chinedu.

He has been on the run since then.

"We still fear he may harm the officers who participated in his deportation or other people in general. Efforts to get him are ongoing," said Nairobi Area head of CID Nicholas Kamwende.

When they were deported on June 3 they caused drama in Lagos prompting the detention of their plane for two weeks.

The Nigerian government came out to declare that it was the one holding the seven Kenyan government officials and five airline crew who had escorted Mr Chinedu and his compatriots.

Chinedu’s deportation caused a diplomatic storm after authorities in Lagos detained a plane that deported them for days saying it had flouted their aviation rules.

The plane and its crew, immigration officials and police were later released on the intervention of president Goodluck Jonathan

Russian Kurtasov Andrey, 42 was also deported several days after then acting interior cabinet secretary Githu Muigai ordered for his deportation.

They include Anthony Chinedu, Johnson Obina, Eneke Chimenze, Emmanuel Peter, Paul Maison, Christopher Nanyelu, John Peter Osinomuno, Ismail Adengule, Michael Olabaji, Paul Owasene, Adu Kolawale, Kenneth Chikenzi, Johnson Obina, Adebiyi Oluwatosini, Peter Sessie and Obira Onzama.

Also deported were Diawara Mamady and Komani Camara (Guinea Bissau); Solomon Haulu (Ethiopia), Abubakar Toure (Ivory Coast), Mohammed Dokure (Burundi), Asif Mohammed and Mohammed Khan (Pakistan), and Mohammed Kamara (Sierra Leone).