Bandits Escape With Livestock
Bandits Escape With Livestock
On Friday, sixty armed morans defeated police reservists and fled with large numbers of sheep from Mugie Ranch located in Laikipia County.
One police reserve was injured by a bullet to the arm during the altercation, and another received a minor head wound.
The police reservists who had been deployed to provide security to the Mugie Ranch seemed to have been ambushed by the group which appeared to have meticulously planned the attack for a while.
Reports indicate that the group later retreated to Kirisia Forest in Samburu County and later divided itself into smaller groups to avoid drawing attention and escape the attention of the authorities.
However, the police reservists were able to recover 73 animals with 193 still missing.
Evan Tomlinson the Managing director of Mugie Ranch seized the opportunity to request the help of Samburu leaders to recover the stolen animals.
“CS Kindiki said that banditry was extinct during a security meeting he conducted in Laikipia a week ago. Despite being illegal, banditry is a threat that has increased.
President William Ruto has previously authorized a disarmament campaign in areas where the crime is common, underscoring the gravity of the situation.
“I’ve given the Internal Security and Defense Ministers orders to make sure that everyone in the impacted areas who owns a gun that wasn’t given to them by the government turns it in by tomorrow.
“We are relocating there, and we won’t leave until all illegal firearms have been returned and all children have resumed their education.”
We cannot allow a few bandits to continue taking our security officers away,” the state head commanded.
CS Kindiki has been at the forefront of taking the war to the bandits’ doorstep after citing their activities as a threat to national security.
Nonetheless, CS Kindiki in December 2023 revealed that banditry in the North Rift region had been contained by a margin of 70 per cent which he stated was notable progress that will allow economic activities to resume in the troubled region.
“Building on the lessons so far, the Government aims at eradicating the menace of banditry and destroying its political, cultural, and commercial networks. 2024 is a decisive year,” CS Kindiki stated at the time.
