- Operation Usalama involves 14 Eastern African countries.
- According to DCI, Operation Usalama is the brainchild of The Eastern Africa Police Chiefs Cooperation (EAPCCO).
Image: The Star
Detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations have arrested six with suspected uncustomed goods.
In a statement on September 15, DCI said that the six were arrested following an operation dubbed Operation Usalama, which involves 14 Eastern African countries.
One of the suspects was arrested at a beauty shop in Kisumu with suspected uncustomed goods.
“Acting on intelligence, the Operation USALAMA X team launched a three-day operation in Kisumu where major searches were conducted in various business premises. During the operation, the team recovered a range of uncustomed goods where one suspect was arrested and is assisting the police with further investigations,” DCI stated.
During the operation, the sleuths also seized other items suspected to be uncustomed.
“The multi-agency team also conducted searches where more items suspected to be uncustomed were seized. The shop owner was arrested in connection with the seized goods,” DCI added.
Along the Kisumu-Kakamega Road sleuths recovered various suspected uncustomed goods.
“Later in the day, the team conducted another search at a Chemist where they found various uncustomed goods,” DCI added.
Four more suspects were arrested at the chemist in Kisumu.
According to DCI, Operation Usalama is the brainchild of The Eastern Africa Police Chiefs Cooperation (EAPCCO), a regional police body whose membership consists of Chiefs of Police of the 14 countries and the Southern African Regional Police Chiefs Co-operation Organisation (SARPCCO) which is principally responsible for the prevention and combating of Cross-border and Transnational Organised Crimes.
The operation was necessitated as a result of the recognition by the Chiefs of police of both regions of the threats posed by transnational crimes including Motor vehicle theft, Narcotic drugs, Trafficking in persons(TIP) /Smuggling of Migrants (SOM), Proliferation of small arms and light weapons, Terrorism and fugitive tracking, Smuggling of minerals, counterfeit and illicit goods and the need to co-operate in the fight against cross- border and transnational crimes that afflict the two regions.
The two regional bodies have in the past successfully organized five simultaneous operations code-named USALAMA I-IX in both regions in 2013 - 2023 in the fight against transnational crimes within the two regions.