Driver to abducted Cuban doctors detained for 15 days

Police have told a court that intelligence reports have implicated a driver of two abducted Cuban doctors in their kidnap at the border town of Mandera.

Anti-Terrorism Police Unit (ATPU) said Isaack Ibren, a driver at Mandera County Government was under investigation for possible involvement in the kidnap of two cuban doctors Landy Rodriguez (a surgeon) and Herera Correa who have been missing since last Friday.

Magistrate Muthoni Nzibe y allowed an application by ATPU seeking to detain Isaack Ibren for 15 days pending the completion of investigations.

The two doctors are feared to have been seized by Al Shabaab militia and taken to Somalia.

In an affidavit filed by Inspector Abdishakur Adan, Ibren was arrested on April 12, 2019 at Mandera by ATPU officers from Mandera County and flown to Nairobi on April 14, 2019 for purposes of carrying out a detailed investigation.

He said Ibren was arrested due to his possible involvement in the planning and facilitating kidnapping of Landy Rodriguez and Herera Correa.

“At the time of his arrest, one mobile phone, a Nokia TA-1034 was recovered and is currently being forensically examined and the reports are yet to be obtained and analysed,” he said.

He said the suspect was using two mobile phone numbers and the data call records are yet to be retrieved.

“The information so far gathered shows that the plot involved Ibren and they were in communication with several other individuals.”

He told the court that the intelligence report shows that the suspect has other associates who were assisting him in planning and executing the kidnap and there is need to interview them and find the entire co-conspirators.

The officer said the suspect is being investigated for several terrorism and related offenses which include kidnapping and murder.

Abdishakur said that based on the issues being raised the suspect is a flight risk and should thus remain in custody pending investigations being carried out on his possible illegal criminal activities.

At the time of the arrest, the suspect was a driver at Mandera County Government was ferrying doctors to the Mandera County Referral Hospital in a Toyota Hilux registration number GKA 22IU.

He added that the two doctors were escorted guarded by two police officers.  

The officer said that few kilometres after the two doctors were picked from their residence, there emerged a Toyota probox which blocked the Hilux where the occupants of the probox opened fire to the vehicle ferrying the Cuban Doctors.

“The attackers who are suspected to be three in number shot and killed one administrative police officer  and kidnapped the two Cuban doctors,” said Abdishakur.

He told the court that the two Cuban doctors were then driven towrds Bulla Hawa in Somalia.