Manhunt on after gunmen shoot and kill cop in Mandera town

Mandera Town/FILE

Security agencies launched a major operation in Mandera town after a police officer was shot and killed in an attack by two gunmen. Corporal Hassan Omar, 55, was on patrol in the area near Taqwa Mosque when two gunmen confronted him on February 25, police said.

The gunmen shot him twice in the head killing him on the spot. They escaped towards the nearby Kenya-Somalia border without stealing anything from him.

Police who responded to the scene and found the officer’s AK47 rifle that had 80 bullets next to his body. The motive of the attack is yet to be known.

A major operation has since been mounted in the border area. Police said the gang is believed to have crossed from Somalia. Two spent cartridges were recovered from the scene.

This comes in the wake of new attacks by the al Shabaab militants who cross from Somalia. Elsewhere in Dagahaley, Garissa county, a motorist was attacked and robbed of goods valued at Sh70,000 between Lanta Gasey and Wardeer settlement along Dabadeer road.

This is after gunmen stopped him on Thursday night. He defied the flagging prompting the gang to shoot at his car. This deflated the tyres forcing the driver and two others on board to stop, alight and hide in bushes.

The gang ransacked the car and stole foodstuff and other valuables before escaping.

Police suspect the gang is part of al Shabaab militants roaming the area.

The gang has staged two attacks in the area and especially in Elwak where a KDF soldier was on February 24 killed in an explosion caused by an improvised Explosive Device.

Five other soldiers were seriously injured in the attack.