Tout shot dead and four commuters injured as gangsters fight over loot

A tout was shot dead inside a matatu in Nairobi during a confrontation between two thugs arguing over some loot.

The gunman also seriously injured the driver and three passengers during the Sunday morning attack inside the Kangemi-bound matatu at the Old Nation roundabout.

The assailant also shot his accomplice who is now under police guard at the hospital.

Terrified passengers, their clothes splattered in blood, scrambled to get out of the matatu after the gunman fled the scene.

Witnesses and police said the matatu was picking passengers when the two boarded while quarrelling.

Nairobi police boss Japheth Koome said the two appeared to have stolen some money from an undisclosed place and were arguing on how to share the loot. One of the thugs had demanded half of the money.

Irritated by the noise, the tout and driver intervened and tried to eject the two from the vehicle. But the action infuriated the gunman.

"This agitated one of the two who was armed to draw a pistol and shoot at the matatu crew and the person he was arguing with. In the process, two other passengers were also injured," said Koome.

The tout was shot in the chest, the driver in the head and two passengers in the stomach. The thug's suspected accomplice was also shot in the pelvic area.

The injured were taken to hospital. The tout died on arrival at the hospital.

Koome said the suspected accomplice is under police guard at the hospital to help in investigations.

He said a manhunt for the gunman who escaped on foot had been launched adding that police were yet to establish where the two had robbed.

Police are also looking for a gunman who shot a motorist along Mombasa Road during a confrontation.

The gunman escaped soon after the incident without stealing anything from the victim.

According to witnesses, the gunman was agitated by the victim's move to hoot at him as he tried to rob another motorist in a traffic jam on Thursday.