Police shoot dead two suspected thugs in botched Nairobi robbery

Two suspected thugs were Sunday night shot dead in a botched robbery in Riruta, Nairobi, and a gun found on them.

Police said the suspects had been attacking and robbing locals when they were alerted.

Three others managed to escape on foot in the shoot-out. The bodies were moved to the mortuary.

Meanwhile, police have launched daytime Alco blow tests on roads in Nairobi to tame drunk driving during the festive season.

More than 80 motorists were at the weekend arrested after failing Alco blow tests.

Police mounted roadblocks on various roads and conducted random checks using Alco blow, which captured 80 motorists on Saturday morning alone.

The same trend was set to be extended to major cities in the course of the week.

Police patrols have been enhanced during this festive season to deal with any form of crime. More officers have been deployed to various places for the mission, officials said.

Nairobi Police boss Joseph Ole Tito said they have enhanced patrols across the city as part of efforts to ensure there is peace or reduced crime. He added traffic police will also enhance operations to ensure road safety at all times.

“When you will be on Christmas mood and enjoying we will be on duty. We are going to ensure things are in order,” he said.

Tito urged Kenyans to use emergency calls including 999, 112 and 911 to report incidents.

The calls from the country are received within a command centre in Nairobi and then they are dispatched to the various officers in the field depending on the issue that has been brought up by the caller.

Police say they have seen a change in terms of response so far since the centre started its operations.

“Let us interact with authorities to ensure our environment is secure. It is the responsibility of everyone to ensure security,” said Tito.

More than 300 National Youth Service personnel have been recruited to man the call centre which has enhanced operations in general.