Kilifi police detain man with 3,900 rolls of bhang

KILIFI: An unidentified man was arrested and 3,900 roles of bhang recovered at a construction house in Mtwapa Kilifi County in a 4.00am police raid.

Police estimate the drug is worth Sh800,000 and allege the suspect belongs to a cartel supplying narcotics to the area. Police also allege the drug could have entered Mombasa from Tanzania and was destined for Lamu where there is a ready market.

Reports indicate police raided a house at Jumba ruins area Sunday morning and recovered the bhang that has been stashed in bags. The suspect who police did not name was a caretaker in the house, according to police.

Kilifi County Police Coordinator Elias Ngetich confirmed that the raid, detention and recovery adding authorities were alerted by local residents.

"Police officers on a tip off from members of the public raided house at Jumba ruins on Saturday night and after a search in one of the rooms they managed to nett 3,900 roles of bhang with a street value of ksh 1 million and arrested one suspected," said Mr Ngetich.

Kilifi OCPD Joshua Ole Leina said the place where the bhang was recovered could be used as a store where buyers go and buy from and sell to their users.

"We have names of three other suspects who are said to be ferrying the bhang to Mtwapa and we are trailing them. We also suspect that the bhang could also be from Tanzania." said Leina.
The chairman of community policing at Mtwapa Mr Khana Mohamed said his committee has been working closely with the police to eradicate the business of drug trafficking in the area.

Mr Mohamed said Mtwapa is a hub of drug trafficking since it harboured people from all nations some permanently living in the area.

He said many youth in the area had been addicted to drugs while others have lost their lives through taking of the hard drugs like brown sugar.

The chairman thanked the police for moving swiftly and raided the house suspected to be harbouring a drug trafficker and arrested him before they recovered the big haul of bhang.

"Our youth in Mtwapa have had their lives ruined while others have died after being addicted to hard drugs and as a community policing committee, we are working closely with the police to ensure this problem is addressed," said Mr Mohamed.

Kilifi County Commissioner Mr Joseph Keter said drug trafficking was becoming rampant in most urban centres of Kilifi county and said the police have been kept alert to arrest the perpetrators of the business.

Mr Keter said the police have been liaising with the community policing committees in the area, Nyumba Kumi ambassadors, and the village elders to help the police with vital information that could lead to the arrest of the drug peddlers.

He said since President Uhuru Kenyatta order to the police to crack down and arrest suspected drug peddlers last year, a number of
suspects have been arrested and thousands of roles of bhang among other drugs have been netted.

He said the suspects have been arraigned in different courts in Kilifi charged with conducting illegal business of drugs.

"Police will continue cracking down and arrest suspect peddlers of hard drugs in Kilifi County and we are appealing to the members of the community to tip our security officers with vital information that could help them arrest the suspects," said Mr Keter.

Mr Ngetich said the arrested suspect is being held at Mtwapa police station for interrogation before being taken to court.