Police arrest three suspects for kidnapping elderly man in Kitale, pursuing one other

One of three suspects arrested by DCI officers in Kitale. [Courtesy, DCI]

Three suspects have been arrested by detectives from the Special Service Unit and Crime Research for kidnapping an elderly man in Kitale town.

The three, identified by Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) officers as Grace Kerubo, Samwel Atunya Makori and Richard Okari Matunda kidnapped 79-year-old Kennedy Bosire on June 6, while he was making plans to travel to Kisii.

In a statement, DCI detailed how Bosire had informed his wife that he would spend the night of June 6 in Kitale town, before proceeding to Kisii the next morning.

When his wife didn’t hear back from Bosire the next day, she knew something was wrong.

She would later receive a phone call from an unidentified number the same day. The callers said they had her husband and demanded money for his release.

“Later at around 8:30pm, she received a call from strangers who informed her that they had held her husband captive and demanded a ransom of Sh2 million, to secure his release,” DCI said.

Left with no option, Bosire’s wife called DCI, who “immediately mobilised to track down the kidnappers.”

After a week of pursuit and investigations, the officers arrested the three suspects on Tuesday and rescued Bosire from a house in the outskirts of Kitale.

DCI says it recovered a motorcycle and a gunnysack used to blindfold the man.

Police are pursuing a fourth suspect.