Police arrest three suspected carjackers, recover vehicle

Scene of crime officer dusts inside a car that was involved in a previous carjacking incident. [File, Standard]

Police in Taita Taveta county arrested three suspected carjackers and recovered a stolen vehicle.

Police said the suspects had carjacked a businesswoman in Kerugoya town, Kirinyaga County, and stabbed her before they fled with the vehicle.

The victim was admitted to a hospital in Kerugoya in critical condition.

"The suspects are dangerous criminals operating in Kenya and Tanzania. Their arrest is a breakthrough in the fight against theft of vehicles and motorcycles in the county," said Mwatate Sub County Police Commander John Owuoth.

The police commander said the suspects were arrested at Makatau police roadblock on Wednesday night as they tried to sneak out the stolen vehicle to the neighbouring country through the porous Kenya-Tanzania border in the Taveta sub-county.

Owuoth said the suspects had Tanzanian currency and other valuables.

"We got a tip-off that the stolen vehicle, a Toyota Fielder, which has a tracking system, was being driven towards Tanzania. We blocked the vehicle, and upon inspection, we found it was stolen. It was being driven to Tanzania," said the police commander.

He said the suspects will be handed over to the Kirinyaga County police, where they committed the offense to face prosecution.

Owuoth believes the suspects are part of a syndicate that has been stealing vehicles and motorcycles in the country and selling them in Tanzania.

A fortnight ago, police at the roadblock arrested two suspects and recovered a stolen motorcycle that they were sneaking out to Tanzania.

Last month, police intercepted a lorry ferrying 32,000 liters of smuggled ethanol.

The police believe the consignment was smuggled into the country from the neighbouirng country through the porous Kenya-Tanzania border.

Owuoth said the driver of the lorry escaped.