Midnight attack leaves five dead in Lamu West, police say

Police have launched a manhunt for criminals who attacked Salama village in Lamu West on Sunday at midnight, killing five people. [Standard, file]

Five people were killed on Sunday in Salama village, Lamu West, after unknown assailants attacked their homes.

According to Lamu West Sub-county Commander Harrison Njuguna, the incident happened at 1:00 am on Sunday, June 25.

"The five were dragged out of their houses and tied up with ropes before being butchered," Njuguna said, adding, "The motive behind the killings is suspected to be a dispute over grazing land."

He said a multi-agency security team had been launched to hunt for the killers.

Njuguna said investigations have also commenced to establish if the incident could be terror-related.

The killings occur a week after eight Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) soldiers were killed when their vehicle was destroyed by an improvised explosive device in a suspected attack by the al-Shabaab group.

The incident took place on Tuesday at the Kenya-Somalia border.