A police officer has been arrested while illegally escorting nine Ethiopians in Samburu County.
Police officers in Samburu County were conducting a routine patrol when they received information that a motor vehicle was ferrying illegal immigrants, from the Logorate area heading towards a notorious route known as Kwa Lenges Panya.
According to police officers, as the vehicle neared the main road junction, they spotted the vehicle in question and attempted to stop it.
However, the driver of the vehicle, while refusing to comply with the police orders, tried to escape, driving erratically towards the main road.
In response, the officers fired warning shots at the vehicle to disable it.
One of the shots struck the vehicle’s right rear wheel, deflating it and forcing the driver to stop.
Police say they ordered the driver to surrender the ignition key, but the driver, in a defiant and aggressive move, exited the vehicle holding a machete and threatened to harm the officers.
This prompted the officers to call for reinforcements.
The Officer Commanding Station (OCS), accompanied by his deputy, rushed to the scene to provide backup.
When they arrived, the driver of the vehicle was still holding the machete, leaning against the car.
After a tense standoff, the officers were able to disarm the individual and arrest him.
Upon searching the driver, they discovered that he was carrying a police ID card as well as two mobile phones, a bunch of assorted keys, and other items believed to be Kuber (a slang term for nicotine pockets).
The arrested officer was taken into custody, and the vehicle was secured, police said.
Police say the vehicle had been ferrying a group of illegal immigrants and had presumably dropped them off in the area before attempting to flee.
The officers returned to the Logorate hill, where they believed the immigrants had been abandoned. Upon reaching the hill, the officers switched off the lights on their vehicle and sounded the horn.
The group of individuals, assuming the vehicle had returned to pick them up, emerged from the thicket and attempted to approach the officers.
The officers quickly apprehended the group of nine individuals, who were later identified as Ethiopian nationals.
The group consisted of eight males and one female, including two minors, Police said.
Upon questioning, the group of Ethiopians explained that they had been dropped off by the driver of the vehicle they had been travelling in, who left them stranded on the hill.
When the officers questioned them further, it became apparent that none of the individuals had any valid documentation.
The nine individuals were subsequently arrested and taken into custody for being unlawfully present in Kenya.
They would face charges related to immigration violations and illegal entry into the country.
