Over 35 houses burnt as police raid village in Tiaty

More than 35 houses were burnt down and about 800 goats stolen when a contingent of police officers attacked Seretion village in Tiaty sub-county.

The officers drawn from the Rapid Deployment Unit (RDU) and the National Police Reservists attacked the village from the Tugen side and set the homes on fire, leaving the residents to the mercy of the early morning cold.

The officers were in a convoy of four armoured carriers, five police lorries and a Land Cruiser. Confirming the incident, area chief Ezron Twarit said the over 800 goats were driven towards Yatya during the 5am incident.

Mr Twarit said the sleeping residents were ambushed and forced to surrender to the assailants who terrorised the village for more than three hours.

Speaking by phone, he said he did not understand the motive behind the attack as the officers were deployed in the area to maintain peace.

Recovery mission

“The officers raided the village early in the morning and burnt down 39 houses and took with them over 800 goats that were ferried using the lorries they had come with,” said Twarit.

The officers, it was suspected, were on an animal recovery mission but had been misinformed by the Tugen that their animals had been stolen by the Pokot.

“Our area was not gazetted as unfit and I don’t understand why the officers attacked the village. However, we suspect they came as a result of being misinformed that the Tugen had lost their animals to the Pokot in a raid and were coming to recover the livestock,” said the chief.

He added that the residents had lost 340 goats to the officers when they attacked the village last Monday.

Joshua Katiar, a resident and human rights activist said they ran for their lives following the ambush.

Efforts to contact County Commissioner Peter Okwanyo were fruitless as his phone was switched off.