Concern over rising cases of motorcycle theft has gripped Kirinyaga County, with boda boda operators skipping church on Sunday to search for a motorcycle stolen from their chairman.
The motorcycle belonging to White Rose Mutithi Boda Boda Operators Chairman Daniel Waweru Kiama was stolen on Saturday at around 5 p.m. from the gate of his home in Rurii Unit 7, Mwea.
Waweru said he was left with only the motorcycle’s keys after suspected thieves trailed him and made away with the bike.
Fellow operators Nathaniel Maina and Kennedy Mwangi said the theft was the fourth reported motorcycle theft in the area this month, with most of the incidents occurring in broad daylight.
They said the thieves have become increasingly brazen, recently stealing a motorcycle belonging to a local teacher while he was in class.
The thief was reportedly so smartly dressed that learners mistook him for another teacher.
Following Saturday’s theft, the operators said they skipped church services yesterday and instead mounted a search for their chairman’s motorcycle, vowing not to stop until it is recovered.
Samuel Kariuki said the operators launched the search because Waweru relies on the motorcycle to support his family and pay school fees for his children.
“He struggled to buy this motorcycle. He has children in university and pays school fees through this motorcycle. We are looking for it,” Kariuki said.
Waweru, who also serves as a coordinator at ACK Rurii Church, said he has been unsettled since the motorcycle was stolen and decided to join the search instead of attending church.
“Imagine being a chairman without a motorcycle,” Waweru said.
The operators have vowed to intensify their efforts to identify and apprehend the suspected thieves, while calling on fellow boda boda operators and security agencies in neighbouring areas to help recover the stolen motorcycles.
