Cattle rustling menaceMulti-agency teams launched a major operation after a 60-year-old man was shot dead and dozens of livestock stolen during a bandit attack in Amwathi Ward, Mutuati Sub-county, Meru County.
A police officer was shot and seriously wounded in the raid which occurred Tuesday afternoon in Leeta Village when an unknown number of armed bandits descended on the area and stole livestock from local residents.
The attackers reportedly made away with 32 goats and four cows belonging to villagers.
During the raid, the bandits fatally shot Reuben Kibaara, a 60-year-old resident who was reportedly on his way to his farm when he encountered the attackers.
The incident was reported, prompting a response from officers drawn from the Kenya Police Service (KPS), the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), and the National Police Reservists (NPR).
The responding team was ambushed, leaving one police officer with a bullet wound in the chest.
The chief inspector of police was rushed to the hospital for medical attention, police said, adding he was in a stable but serious condition.
Security officers visited the scene, documented the incident and immediately launched a pursuit operation to track down the armed raiders and recover the stolen livestock.
The body of the deceased was removed from the scene and taken to Nyambene Sub-County Hospital Mortuary, where it awaits a post-mortem examination.
The latest incident underscores the persistent challenge of livestock theft and armed banditry in parts of northern Kenya, where communities living along county borders frequently face raids by heavily armed criminals.
This is the latest such an attack amid ongoing operations targeting banditry.
The area is among those under Operation Maliza Uhalifu aimed at dealing with bandits.
The operation has managed to contain crime in the area and other counties amid persistence.
The operation targets Baringo, West Pokot, Turkana, Samburu, Marsabit, Meru and Isiolo counties.
Besides retributive reaction, strategic investment and sustainable development have also taken a prominent place among the government’s planned crime control interventions for Kenya’s Northern frontier and the Kerio Valley belt.
Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen said the long-term vision is to empower the communities to actively take part in the war against animal rustling and undertake legitimate nation-building activities.
He said he plans to distribute subsidised agricultural inputs and extension services to area residents in a bid to revive farming activities as a source of livelihood.
Murkomen ordered fresh vetting for all National Police Reservists (NPRs) as part of efforts to bolster the operations.
He said he plans to distribute subsidised agricultural inputs and extension services to area residents in a bid to revive farming activities as a source of livelihood.
“We are coming to dismantle not only the criminals themselves but also to bring down the entire chain that has been the cattle and livestock rustling industry,” he said.
He also announced a new policy shift, which institutionalises the command structure of the NPR officers, stating they will hence be under the direct command of the Officer Commanding Police Stations (OCS) as part of efforts to enhance their operations.
The attacks have affected development at large. Most of the stolen animals are driven to urban centres and, in particular, where they are slaughtered and sold as products, officials say.
