Four arrested, Sh9 million recovered in Wells Fargo heist probe

Four suspects have been arrested and Sh9 million recovered in connection with the theft of Sh94.9 million from a Wells Fargo cash-in-transit vehicle on November 6.

The arrests were made by DCI detectives in different parts of Nairobi following forensic analysis of the crime scene.

In a statement on Sunday, October 12, the DCI said the first suspect, Ismael Patrick Gitonga, was nabbed in Rongai. He is believed to be the driver who helped the Wells Fargo crew members - Mugetha, Nduiki and another unidentified person - to escape with the money from South C using his Toyota Fielder.

The second and third suspects, Michael Matoro Njeru and Samuel Onyango, were apprehended in Njiru area in Kayole, where they were found modifying the Toyota Fielder to conceal its identity. The vehicle was seized by the detectives.

The fourth suspect, Martin Nderi Ng’ang’a, was arrested near the Thika Road Mall in Roysambu.

He led the detectives to his rented house in the same area, where Sh9.1 million in cash was recovered.

The detectives also recovered the cash box used in transporting the stolen money from a forest near Gataka Market in Karen.

The DCI said the forest was the meeting point for the suspects, where they divided the loot before fleeing.

The four suspects will remain in custody and will be arraigned in court once the investigations are complete.

 According to the police, at 6am on Monday, the two staff sneaked the truck loaded with cash out of the company's Nairobi offices. It is the two armed Administration Police officers assigned to them who later raised alarm.

Police in Lang'ata were mobilised to pursue the fleeing suspects, and the empty company vehicle was found abandoned in South C.

DCI boss Mohammed Amin has already published the names of the two missing men, a crew commander and his driver. He said he has formed a special team to hunt for the staff and recover the cash

Detectives from the elite Operation Support Unit (OSU) based at the DCI headquarters, together with officers from the Nairobi area Crime Research and Intelligence Bureau, have been tasked to hunt for the missing suspects.

This heist comes three years after another incident in 2020 where a man said to be the mastermind behind a Sh72 million ATM cash theft was shot by police under controversial circumstances.