Students from Nairobi arrested over illicit brew

Several students and teachers from a Nairobi school are expected in court today after they were allegedly found drunk in a bus.

The driver of the bus ferrying the students and teachers from the secondary school in Kariobangi to Oldonyo-Sabuk for a school trip were also arrested for carrying excess passengers. The bus has also been impounded.

The suspects who were arrested in Thika on Saturday were accused of consuming chang’aa, an illicit brew, and engaging in immoral behaviour while on the bus they had hired.

Six students, their three teachers and the bus crew have been locked up at the Thika Police Station.

They were arrested at Witeithie Estate after police noticed what they termed funny behaviour as the bus cruised along the Thika Superhighway.

A police officer who did not wish to be named said he suspected something fishy was going on as the bus headed to Thika Town.

“We stopped it because the music was too loud. The students were dancing on the aisle drinking alcohol while others were caressing. As a matter of fact, one of the students was completely naked,” said the officer.

He added: “We inspected the bus and found 10 litres of chang’aa and several bottles of wines and spirits. We found teachers and several students drunk and they were engaging in immoral behaviour.”

Nelson Njoroge, a sugarcane vendor at Witeithie bus stage, said: “The music was too loud and the students were very wild and making a lot of noise. Also, the way they were holding each other and caressing was horrifyingly unacceptable.”

 SOFT DRINKS

However, the students who spoke at the police station denied the accusations. They claim they were taking soft drinks, not alcohol, when they were arrested. But their teachers refused to address journalists.

“It is true some of us were standing in the bus when the police flagged us down. However, I wonder how the officers could mistake sodas and coffee for alcohol,” one student said.

The students pleaded with the police to set them free to no avail. The police have maintained their position that the students, teachers and the bus crew would be arraigned today.

But the police declined to give an official statement until they complete investigations. The officers said they would facilitate the students who were not arrested to go back to their school. This came as cases of student unrest continue to rock schools across the country. The riots have been accompanied by burning of schools.