Eight Ethiopians were apprehended at a hospital where they had been taken after their vehicle was involved in a fatal accident in Mwea, Kirinyaga County. The accident resulted in the deaths of two individuals, according to police reports.
The group, along with their Kenyan driver, was traveling in a salon car when the accident occurred on Saturday, July 27, near Mutithi Shopping Centre. Hospital staff at White House Hospital reported that nine victims had been brought in by a good Samaritan, but eight of them were unable to communicate in national languages.
Police arrived at the hospital and found nine accident victims: one Kenyan who had sustained multiple injuries and eight Ethiopian nationals aged between 16 and 20. The victims were involved in a serious road accident along the Sagana-Makutano highway in the Riandira area while traveling in a Toyota Probox, driven by an unknown driver, along with a motorcycle.
Both the car and motorcycle were moving in the same direction when the collision occurred, resulting in the rider and a passenger succumbing to their injuries on the spot. The driver of the vehicle in which the Ethiopians were traveling fled the scene.
First aid was administered at the hospital, and the victims were later transferred to Kerugoya General Hospital. The Kenyan driver was admitted, while the eight Ethiopian nationals, who had sustained minor injuries, were treated and discharged in stable condition before being escorted and booked at the police station.
They are expected to face charges and be deported back to their home country, police said. This incident marks the latest in a series of arrests of Ethiopians involved in smuggling cases, highlighting a troubling trend.
Authorities report that many Ethiopians use the Moyale route in their attempts to reach South Africa and the Middle East, often unaware of the dangers that lie ahead. Numerous arrests of these individuals occur as they wait to be transported to their next destinations across the country.
Officials from the Transnational Organized Crime unit are conducting joint operations to address the issue of human smuggling. Most of those arrested arrive in Kenya seeking jobs or are simply in transit.
What remains puzzling is how these immigrants manage to evade numerous police roadblocks set up along their route from the Moyale border to Nairobi, especially since they often travel in groups. There are over 20 roadblocks along this stretch, which underscores the seriousness of the security agencies’ efforts to combat this practice.
In response to the growing menace, an Ethiopian national was recently sentenced to 31 years in prison for trafficking 12 fellow Ethiopian immigrants in Nairobi.
Officials from the Transnational Organized Crime unit are conducting joint operations to address the issue of human smuggling. Most of those arrested arrive in Kenya seeking jobs or are simply in transit.
What remains puzzling is how these immigrants manage to evade numerous police roadblocks set up along their route from the Moyale border to Nairobi, especially since they often travel in groups. There are over 20 roadblocks along this stretch, which underscores the seriousness of the security agencies’ efforts to combat this practice.
In response to the growing menace, an Ethiopian national was recently sentenced to 31 years in prison for trafficking 12 fellow Ethiopian immigrants in Nairobi.
