Living in fear: How violent gangs are terrorising Western Kenya

Kakamega where insecurity is on rise. (Photo/Benjamin Sakwa)

A new spate of killings and robbery has hit the Western Kenya region.

For the last two months, residents have been experiencing bizarre deaths, injuries and loss of property thanks to gangs that have been attacking businesspeople, locals, and boda boda operators across the region.

The villagers are now living in fear as gangs sprawl unchecked.

The gangs have been operating and striking as early as 8pm, armed with pistols and AK47 guns. At least 16 motorbikes have so far been stolen.

Over the same period, at least 20 people have been killed in the attacks.

Bizarre deaths that have seen at least five bodies of women, one with a missing head, and gouged eyes while another three women with chopped off tongues, killed in a similar manner and dumped along the road, in sacks.

Last week, four men armed with AK-47 firearms stormed Ang’orom trading centre in Teso South, Busia County and stole commodities of unknown value from two supermarkets before fleeing.

According to locals, the thugs used vehicles in their operation, making it difficult for residents to identify them.

Alupe Assistant Chief Dorcus Okumu confirmed the incident saying that police are investigating the matter to establish the owners of the guns.

“We have kicked off investigations and police have a good lead on the issue. It is true two supermarkets were broken into and an unknown value of goods stolen at around 8pm before the gang of four members escaped,” said Okumu.

 “We are urging our people to collaborate with the security agencies with a view of putting to an end robbery and bringing the culprits to book. But I am assuring our locals that their security and safety are guaranteed because we are working with police who have to intensify their patrol at night.”

 enemy within

The incident come barely two weeks following a similar incident in the same area where an unknown number of gunmen stormed the area and stole goods in one of the supermarkets before fleeing to neighbouring Uganda.

According to locals, there are two groups of gangs, one of which operates and stays in Busia while another raids different places before moving to Uganda in a hideout.

“Both gangs operate using guns and the worrying thing is that one gang lives among us in Busia but we wonder why security agencies have failed to contain and get rid of it. The other gang crosses the border after it has terrorised residents and flees back to Uganda. They use the border without police noticing,” said James Elkane, a resident of Nambale.

In the neighbouring Butula constituency, residents are also living in fear following the emergency of a youthful gang that terrorises boda boda operators.

Erick Were, a Butula Youth leader, says one boda boda operator was killed by a gang and buried in a shallow grave before the assailants ran away with his motorbike.

“We are living in fear because of the rise in insecurity. Last month, we lost a young man who was killed by a gang of young people before he was buried in a shallow grave and his motorbike stolen. What pains and worries locals is that the suspects are known, reports were made but they are still at large and roaming around,” said Were.

“We need the county security committee to do their work or else we start protecting ourselves,” Were added.

And in Vihiga County, residents are living in fear following the emergency of a gang that operates as early as 8pm targeting business people and boda boda operators.

The gang uses a vehicle and it has already killed three people, stolen 16 motorbikes, and left 16 people nursing serious injuries.

Last week security agencies recovered a pistol and five cartridges in Emuhaya area. They also recovered a stolen motorbike and a vehicle in Kisumu.

Police involvement?

Locals claim the guns being used by the gang belong to police who lend them to the gangs for their operations.

Two weeks ago, Nicholas Olincho, a boda boda operator from Esaba village, Emuhaya Constituency, was shot five times and killed on the spot. He lost a bike he had purchased on loan.

Olincho was about to complete payments of the Sh139,000 motorcycle loan when the gang struck.

He was ferrying two customers to the Mundika area when they turned against him, shot him and stole the motorcycle.

Eyewitnesses say the two unknown gunmen were quickly joined by their colleague in a vehicle to which they loaded the motorbike and took off.

Olincho’s mother Rose Opisa says she was called by another boda boda operator who told her her son had been shot dead.

“I went to the scene where my son had been shot and I was shocked to see the body lying helplessly in a pool of blood. Beside him, there were five bullets. He was shot on the back, stomach, and chest. We found another two bullets logged in his body after the postmortem.” said Opisa.

Emuhaya boda boda operators association chairman Alex Evuya said the gang was hiring the firearms from police officers and the officers were abetting crime in the area.

“I can tell you for a fact that these thugs are hiring firearms from the police. The police officers are reluctant to crack the whip on these people. We want our Interior CS Kithure Kindiki to intervene and bring order and sanity in Vihiga County before we lose more people,” said Evuya.

Evuya said three people since killed were boda boda operators and were paying loans for the motorcycles.

“It is becoming dangerous to operate a motorbike bought on loan because the 16 stolen motorbikes are all bought on loan either by boda boda operators or just traders using motorbikes they bought,” said Evuya.

Emuhaya Member of Parliament MP Omboko Milemba said he has written to the Interior Cabinet Secretary urging him to restore order and peace in the county.

“We are losing young energetic hardworking men in the hands of robbers and the issue of insecurity is a collective responsibility. I have urged my people to be calm and let the security apparatus do their work. That is why I have written to the Interior CS to intervene and ensure security is enhanced and the lives and properties of our people are safeguarded,” said Milemba.

Milemba however questioned why the security agencies were taking so long to deploy police officers to occupy the three police posts the constituency has built using public funds.

“We want to be told why are police reluctant to occupy the built and complete police posts. Our people are also asking why the gang is using guns when it is public knowledge that the guns are supposed to be in the hands of police. Who is giving the thugs the firearms they are using?

Silent victims

Vihiga County Police Commander Peter Kattam, however, blamed the locals for remaining silent when some of them were holding firearms illegally.

“We are telling our people to report any person holding a firearm to the police because we are aware that we have some locals with guns and our people are quiet. We have instructed our police officers not to tolerate any person with a gun,” said Kattam.

The police boss told the Nairobian that police have recovered five cartridges which they forwarded to the ballistic laboratory in Nairobi and are awaiting the ballistic report.

“We have made progress in all the reported cases. We have recovered a pistol, a motorbike, and vehicle stolen from our people and, as we speak, we are waiting for the ballistic report to know which gun was used in the incident where a boda boda rider was shot,” said Kattam.

In Kakamega County, the locals are in shock following bizarre killings in the county with the majority of victims being women.

For the last one month, the county has witnessed at least nine cases of murder with two cases involving women who are allegedly killed in a ritualistic manner. Victims have their tongues left protruding, they are strangled and wrapped inside a white sack.

Last week, the headless mutilated body of Arnota Luchende,53, from Lurambi Constituency was found at a maize plantation at Ebusang’ang’a.

The deceased’s private parts and tongue were chopped off.