Police Mount Probe After Civilian Caught With Military Equipment

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Police Mount Probe After Civilian Caught With Military Equipment
Police Mount Probe After Civilian Caught With Military Equipment

Africa-PressKenya. Police are investigating how military equipment got to an auction at the Mombasa port and sold to a civilian.

In a statement, Coast Regional Police boss Manase Musyoka noted that the officer recovered 14 navy blue combat fatigues and 17 helmets from a member of the public.

According to the Nation, the civilian attended an auction in Mombasa where he bought the items thinking they could be used by the public. However, he later learnt that the equipment belonged to the military and went ahead to report to the police.

“The equipment being out there in public by people who are not vetted or officially performing government duties is very dangerous. Someone having them means he or she didn’t have good intentions. We don’t use them for normal operations,” Musyoka stated as quoted by the Nation.

“For now, we know they came through the Port of Mombasa. We don’t want to mention the source country as it might interfere with investigations,” he added when asked about the country of origin the items came from.

This also raised the question of security and imposters who hire gear and pose as members of the disciplined forces. Investigative journalist Purity Mwambia shed light on this with an expose on how some rogue members of the police force rent out their gear to thugs.

But the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) George Kinoti, had discredited Mwambia’s investigative report dubbed Guns Galore (Silaha Mtaani) which alleged that thugs hired guns, ammunition and police attire from law enforcers at charges ranging between Ksh 1,000 to Ksh 200,000.

Kinoti stated that Citizen TV did not consult the police or relevant stakeholders before airing the piece. He further alleged that the AK 47 gun, a pistol, handcuffs and police uniform the reporter allegedly purchased from police officers weren’t properties of the National Police Service.

A section of Kenyans called on Kinoti to acknowledge the reporter’s feature story, especially after the arrest of two suspects in Changamwe who were caught with police attire.

On Monday, April 26, a cop and a civilian were apprehended by detectives in Changamwe, Mombasa County, after they reportedly attacked and injured a policeman.

The two suspects wore police uniforms when they attacked a police constable (PC) who was dropping off two security guards from a police station. The guards had recorded statements in a robbery case they had witnessed.

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