Nowhere is safe for you, Saitoti tells gangs

By Moses Njagih and Cyrus Ombati

Internal Security Minister George Saitoti says criminals fleeing a crackdown against Mungiki activities in Central Province are behind the spate of insecurity in Nairobi.

The minister said preliminary investigation had shown criminals who have been operating in the Mungiki-prone areas had relocated to the city to escape the intensified operations by a police unit.

"We suspect many of them have moved to Nairobi, which they perceive as safe for their activities. But our word to the gangs is that nowhere is safe for them. It’s neither Central nor Nairobi," said the minister.

Speaking in Nyeri on Wednesday after meeting the Provincial Administration, Prof Saitoti termed the rise in crime in Nairobi as worrying and a threat to investors. He said that security officers in the city had been mobilised to arrest crime and restore investor confidence.

Security meetings

The Standard established that a series of security meetings have been held at police headquarters and Nairobi Area Command to strategise on how to deal with insecurity.

Cases of violent attacks have been on the rise especially in Nairobi. Victims tell of armed young men aged between 18 and 30.

The gangs have been attacking motorists especially in Karen, Lavington and other up-market residential areas. They usually target expensive cars. Statistics show up to 10 robberies are reported every night in Nairobi alone.

The latest victim was Youth and Sports PS Kinuthia Murugu who was shot and seriously wounded in an attack in Hurlingham last weekend.

And, Mr Caesar Asiyo, a personal assistant to the Prime Minister was on Monday night hijacked in Karen and robbed of his mobile phone.

The assaults happened days after a Kenyatta University lecturer Prof Peter Kenya was shot dead in Maziwa Estate near Zimmerman. Khwisero MP Peter Akula was two weeks ago carjacked and robbed of money in a similar attack. Saitoti urged administrators to take advantage of the current goodwill of political and religious leaders in Central Province to eradicate the proscribed sect.

"The leaders and residents are in agreement that the sect should be eradicated," he said.

 

 

Read all about: Mungiki crime Central Province Nairobi insecurity

 

 

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