Police officers found engaging in human and drug trafficking will face the full force of the law, Marsabit County Commissioner (CC), Evans Achoki has said.
Achoki said the government multi-agency team would also mount impromptu roadblocks fully equipped with detectors as there would be no compromise in the fight against the two criminal activities.
Speaking in his office on Monday in relation two incidents in which police officers based in Sololo and Moyale sub-counties have been implicated in bhang trafficking and smuggling of aliens, the County Commissioner expressed concern over the blatant defiance of the law by the very people expected to be its custodians.
“The two vices are a major threat to the security of this country and there is no way we can condone them,” Achoki stated.
He noted out that the arrest of two regular police officers attached to Sololo police station and another two general service unit (GSU) officers based in Moyale in the past five days was a pointer that the problem was more complex than imagined.
Two civilians were also arrested in connection with the two incidents in which bhang was seized and illegal aliens arrested.
In the incident that occurred at Laisamis on the Moyale –Isiolo highway last Thursday, two police constables from Sololo police station and a woman accomplice were nabbed with 13.45 kilograms of bhang valued at Sh.195, 000 was netted
In the recent incident that occurred on Sunday night at Yamicha-Degogicha road at the boundary between Marsabit and Isiolo counties, a vehicle belonging to the GSU was intercepted in which about 110 kilograms of bhang valued at Sh.1.6 million was impounded and 10 aliens arrested.
The vehicle was under the command of an armed inspector of police and a constable who was equally armed as well as the driver. A civilian believed to have been acting as the guide was also arrested.
The CC cautioned that any rogue police officer would be arrested and prosecuted accordingly.
However, Achoki acknowledged the good work being done by majority of the Kenya police service members save for a few rotten elements in their midst.
“We are engaging everybody in this war, including the military,” he said, adding that special equipment, including sniffer dogs to help detect drugs, firearms and other contraband were being sourced to enhance the fight.
At the same time, Achoki appealed to members of the public for continued cooperation, while promising that any useful information on crime and especially on drug brokers and peddlers would be treated in utmost confidence.
The CC was optimistic that the war against drugs would eventually be won as the Ethiopian authorities had pledged support for the initiative.
Bhang is normally smuggled into the country through illegal routes along the border in Moyale and Sololo sub-counties, mainly from Sheshaman area in Ethiopia.
By Sebastian Miriti
