DCI detectives are actively searching for a suspect who disappeared following a failed attempt to transport 17.5 kg of marijuana from Siaya to Mombasa. DCI Director Mohamed Amin reported that the suspect had planned to send the package through a courier service but became apprehensive when the agent began inspecting the suspicious package, which was concealed in a nylon sack.
“The trafficker’s plan seemed foolproof. However, as the package was being inspected at the booking office, the trafficker vanished into thin air, setting off alarm bells for the vigilant attendant. Sensing something fishy, the attendant alerted the police, and a swift response was mounted,” Amin said in a statement on Sunday.
He said upon arrival, the officers opened the sack and found a lawyer of raw bananas.
But beneath the bananas lay 245 long rolls of cannabis sativa, weighing 17.5 kilograms.
“The seized narcotics were swiftly taken to the safe confines of Siaya police station, as relentless pursuit for the elusive trafficker is currently underway,” the DCI boss said.
The seizure occurred just five days after two other suspects were apprehended in Busia with bhang valued at Sh320,000. The suspects, including a 17-year-old minor, were arrested at a roadblock on the Nambale-Busia road while traveling in a Toyota Hiace matatu. During the inspection, officers discovered and confiscated five bales of marijuana, totaling 44 kilos, according to Amin’s statement.
In another development, detectives from the Anti-Narcotics Unit (ANU) at the DCI headquarters on Kiambu Road conducted an operation that resulted in the arrest of two drug traffickers in Donholm.
Amin revealed that one suspect is Kenyan and the other is a Tanzanian national. Investigations indicated that the Tanzanian suspect had entered Kenya as a specialist in packaging and disguising illicit drugs in backpacks for global distribution.
“Following their capture, the suspects guided detectives to their abode in Manyanzani area in Tala Kangundo subcounty. During a thorough search of their house, authorities unearthed a backpack with a cunningly concealed compartment housing cannabis sativa, alongside a digital scale and various incriminating documents,” Amin said in a statement.
He said further investigations established that the narcotics are a unique species of cannabis sativa that originated from a foreign country and sneaked into the country via the Namanga border.
“According to intelligence reports, the street value of one gram of this particular cannabis sativa is Sh8,000.”
Amin, however, said that further analysis will be conducted to unravel the distinctiveness of the drug from those found locally.
The suspects are expected in court once investigations are completed.
