- Milimani principal magistrate Zainab Abdul granted police 10 days instead of 21 days as sought.
- She said the prosecution's application to detain the five was merited because huge sums of money was stolen.
Image: Police
The arrest and arraignment of five men in the theft of Sh94.9 million Wells Fargo heist in Nairobi marked the crime of the week.
The five were on November 14 produced in court and detained for ten days. They included employees of Wells Fargo Company Only Sh9.1 million of the money stolen has been recovered.
Milimani principal magistrate Zainab Abdul granted police 10 days instead of 21 days as sought.
She said the prosecution's application to detain the five was merited because huge sums of money was stolen.
The suspects have been remanded at Capitol Hill Police Station.
Inspector Michael Kimilu said in an affidavit he is investigating a criminal offence of conspiracy to commit a felony contrary to section 393 of the Penal Code.
Kimilu said investigation commenced and established that the cash amounting to Sh94,916,750 belonging to Quickmart Supermarkets which was on transit to Family Bank Kenyatta Avenue, was stolen by known employees of Wells Fargo.
Kimilu said the suspects committed the offence in collaboration with unknown others moments after the cash in transit vehicle registration number KBA S commonly known as K09 had departed from Fargo house in south C at about 0714hrs.
"Upon receipt of the incident report, investigation team proceeded to the v of crime along Southern bypass in South C area where motor vehicle KBA S commonly known as K09 was found abandoned with its engine running,” he said.
The court further heard that the scene was processed and motor vehicle searched whereby it was noted that the consignment of cash which had been stashed in three blue metallic boxes was missing.
He said Wells Fargo crew commander Daniel Mugetha and driver Antony Ndiuki were missing and their mobile phone numbers switched off.
"Analysis was conducted and motor vehicle registration number KBM 75W Fielder white in colour was spotted trailing the said Wells Fargo van and later made away with the consignment in three blue boxes.”
He added that both day and night search operations were activated by the investigation team leading to arrest of one of the suspects who is the registered owner of KBM 751W in Ongata Rongai on November 10, 2023.
Investigations traced the said motor vehicle to Njiru Chokaa area along Kangundo Road.
The officer said the investigation of two suspects and eventually traced and apprehended another suspect on November 11, 2023.
Upon search at the suspect's rented premise at Roybain heights behind TRM Kasarani, led to recovery of Sh9,101,300.
The court was also told that the suspects are a flight risk having been on the run since November 6 till their respective arrests.
The remaining amount yet to be recovered is large and thus release of the respondents at this juncture is likely to jeopardize the recovery, he said.
The hunt for the other suspects is ongoing.
Ugandan stupefied and robbed of four-wheel drive car in Nairobi
Detectives are looking for a gang that stupefied a man who claimed to be the brother of Uganda National Assembly Speaker Annet Anita and robbed him of her four-wheel drive car in Nairobi.
Anita has denied she has such a brother and asked police to investigate him.
She said she does not import her cars the manner in which the man was caught.
Wilson Okello was found admitted at the Kenyatta National Hospital after the stupefying and robbery incident.
This was a day after the incident in which he had been robbed of a Toyota Prado car that he was to deliver to his sister, police said.
According to the Cambridge Dictionary stupefying is an act of making someone unable to think clearly, usually because they are extremely tired or bored, or have taken drugs
Stupefying to commit a felony is contrary to Section 230 of the Penal Code and carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
He told police from his KNH hospital he had picked the silver in colour car from Mombasa port and hit the road to Uganda on November 10.
On reaching in Voi area, he was flagged by four people who included two women who claimed to be pastors heading to Kisumu.
They asked him to offer them a ride to Kisumu and they would help fuel his car. The car did not have registration numbers then.
On the road, the driver said he was offered a soda as it was hot and agreed to take it.
From that point he could not recall what happened until November 11 when he found himself at the hospital in Nairobi.
By then, his relatives from Uganda had been calling him in vain
He had been picked up by an ambulance from the roadside along Mombasa Road and brought to the hospital.
By then, he was half naked as he only had his boxer and vest on, witnesses said.
The thugs had vanished with the car and all other belongings.
Two arrested with 77 kilos of elephant tusks
Two men were arrested while trafficking 36 pieces of elephant tusks and weighing 77 kilos valued at Sh12 million in Maralal, Samburu County.
The men were flagged down on the Maralal-Kisima Road on Tuesday November 14 at about 9 am.
The team who conducted the arrest included police and officials from the Kenya Wildlife Service.
Police said a search conducted on a car that the two were using realized the 36 pieces of elephant tusks indicating up to ten elephants were killed to get them.
The source of the ivory is yet to be known but it is suspected they got them from elephants killed in the nearby national parks including Samburu, police said.
The men were detained at the local police station ahead of a planned arraignment.
Police said they will be charged with the offence of being in Possession of Wildlife Trophies of Endangered Species Contrary to Section 92(4) of the Wildlife Conservation Management Act 2013. The recovery comes despite stringent measures in place to address the menace of poaching in the country and region.