Armed youths storm bar, destroy alcohol

Youth destroying alleged second generation alcohol seized from one of the clubs in Thika town over the weekend.Alcohol worth millions of shillings was destroyed in the mayhem.PHOTO BY KAMAU MAICHUHIE.

Armed youths raided and destroyed an alleged den of second-generation alcohol.

Armed with axes and machetes, the youths made their way into the Fulilia club and started to destroy alcohol, which they claimed was banned.

It took the intervention of the police, led by Thika West District Administration Police Commandant (DAPC) Samwel Obonya, to calm the irate youths.

Mr Obonya told them to instead isolate the suspected alcohol so that it could be impounded.

However, once the dozens of cartons of the alleged toxic alcohol were removed from the club and the police started to pack it into a waiting police land cruiser, a mob that had gathered objected and demanded it be destroyed at the spot.

"We want it destroyed here. There is no need of taking it to the police station since we know it might disappear," charged the crowd.

The stand-off between the police and the public lasted for more than 20 minutes as the public stood their ground.

After sensing the public would not give in, the police threw in the towel and left leaving the public to destroy it.

The mob then quickly reduced the heaps of cartons to broken glass. Police arrested 12 revellers and barmaids for selling and drinking beer before the stipulated time.