- There's been an upsurge in cannabis seizures across the country in recent days pointing to either enhanced surveillance or increased trafficking of the drug.
- In the last 25 days alone, there have been nearly ten separate seizures of the drug across the country.
Image: DCI
Police on Friday seized Sh864.9kgs of bhang worth Sh25.4 million and arrested one suspect during an operation in Mombasa’s Kadzadani area.
A police report indicates that the operation was executed by officers from the Anti-Narcotics Unit of the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) at around noon.
“Police officers from Kadzandani while on patrol received credible information that there was a drug trafficker at Green estate in the Kiembeni area. They acted upon and managed to identify a house of the said trafficker,” the report said.
“They gained entry and upon conducting search recovered 16 sacks of dry plant material suspected to be narcotic drugs (cannabis). They arrested the wife of the trafficker, who is assisting police with investigations,” the report added.
“Weighing of the exhibit was done to wit 864.9 kg with a market value of Sh25,407,000.”
There's been an upsurge in cannabis seizures across the country in recent days pointing to either enhanced surveillance or increased trafficking of the drug.
In the last 25 days alone, there have been nearly ten separate seizures of the drug across the country.
In most of the incidents, suspects were arrested as they attempted to transport the narcotic drug using public means.
The latest incident happened on Thursday where police in Lodwar town seized bhang worth Sh50,000, which was bundled up as fish for transport to Kitale at one of the bus stations in the area.
On September 9, Customs officials at Malaba One Stop Border Post (OSBP) in Busia county intercepted 520 rolls of bhang with an estimated street value of Sh520,000.
A day earlier, on September 8, DCI detectives had seized another 17.5kg of bhang as the suspect who fled attempted to transport the haul from Siaya to Mombasa.
The suspect wanted to ship the consignment via a courier service but developed cold feet after the agent started inspecting the suspicious package concealed in a nylon sack.
A week earlier on September 3, detectives in Busia town had arrested two suspects, including a 17-year-old minor, at a roadblock and recovered from their vehicle bhang worth Sh320,000.
On August 26, police in Busia had also seized 17 kilogrammes of bhang and arrested a suspected drug trafficker.
That same day, detectives nabbed narcotics valued at over Sh3 million in three separate areas.
Along the Migori-Sirare highway, they intercepted a motorcycle rider carrying two bags of marijuana weighing 73.6 kilograms, valued at approximately Sh2,208,000.
The second incident happened along the Nambale-Busia road where officers manning a roadblock interception a motor vehicle. one suspect who was found in possession of 350 rolls of bhang weighing 22 kilograms, with an estimated street value of Sh660,000.
In the third incident along the Mai Mahiu-Nairobi road, officers intercepted a motor vehicle and recovered 19 packages of cannabis.