Dark secrets of Kenya's deadliest gang

A community policing group claims to be fighting Sungu Sungu, but residents say the group works with the terror gang. Police appear to be working with both groups complicating the security situation, writes THE UNDERWORLD TEAM

Charles Midika Marangi’s three mobile phones rang intermittently. He picked them in turns and gave succinct instructions to the callers.

"Take the details of the suspects and call me later," he told one caller as we waited to interview him in Kisii town last week.

"Those were my people calling to give crime updates in their locations. They always give details of any suspicious characters," he said as he picked yet another call, this time from a District Officer.

As Chairman of the Kisii South District Community Policing Chairman, Marangi is an influential man who reins terror on criminals. A towering figure, he has tightened his grip on the post, which he has held for more than six years. He formerly controlled all community policing volunteers in the entire Kisii District before it was split.

He wines and dines with senior security officials in the district because of the importance of his position in fighting crime. But he is also a man under siege, because of claims that the dreaded Sungu Sungu vigilante was actually part of his community Policing outfit?

For the past few months, the 58-year father of four and his Kisii Central counterpart, Ibrahim Ongubo have been fighting to shrug off the Sungu Sungu monster.

"We have nothing to do with Sungu Sungu. It is a criminal outfit and it’s sad that some Kenyans have always believed it is part of community policing. We cannot work with criminals. We don’t kill. We don’t settle domestic disputes neither do we work for politicians," said Marangi.

He said the vigilante had good intensions when it was started in 2002 to help fight off criminals who had outwitted the police but admits things started falling a part after some members of the vigilante started engaging in criminal activities.

"The Sungu Sungu you are hearing of today is actually composed of criminals who fled from their homes to avoid arrests. They are killers on hire," said Marangi.

He added: "Community policing doesn’t support lynching of suspects. Our work is to help the police with intelligence in fighting crime. Our members are vetted and are elected by the people."

Marangi and Ongubo said they have 15 Community policing members in every location and hold meetings with the Officer Commanding their divisions (OCPD) once in a month to review the security in the Districts.

Lamentations

"We are doing a risky and thankless job and its bad some people are linking us with these criminals. We have received many threats from these same criminals but we will not be cowed until we drive them away from our midst," said Ongubo.

Marangi and Ongumbo, however, admit that some criminals may have infiltrated the community policing unit and were giving it a bad name.

"The problem is that we are not being paid any allowances or incentives by the government and some members may be tempted to accept bribes to protect criminals. We have in the past suspended such members," said Ongumbo.

"Our biggest challenge right now is to convince Kenyans that Sungu Sungu is not a community policing unit but a bunch of criminals who should be in prison," he added.

But even as the two community policing officials dismiss the vigilante as an illegal grouping of criminals, most Kisii residents interviewed believe it was enjoying protection from some senior government officials and politicians.

"If these people are criminals how come the government has not arrested its officials? Why are they walking freely in town while running their businesses?" asked an official of the Centre for Community Dialogue (CODE), a Non Governmental Organisation advocating for human rights and democracy.

The official, who asked not to be named for fear of reprisals, said it would not be possible to draw a line between the Sungu Sungu and Community policing.

"It is the Mungiki of Kisii and it’s high time the Government confesses that it has failed to contain the group and was merely playing public relations about it."

The official said members of the community policing should be trained on human rights and on how to handle suspects. These members, he suggested, should also be paid allowances.

He said that dismantling the group would be an uphill task because it had enjoyed support from past District Commissioners and police officers in the District.

Proscribed group

"I am told a newly posted senior police officer has declared war on the vigilante, but I doubt if he will succeed because his juniors are actually working with its members," he said.

Kisii Central OCPD Tom Mutisya denied claims that some police officers in the area were working in cahoots with members of the outlawed Sungu Sungu group to terrorise residents.

"The vigilante remains proscribed and their activities are criminal. We don’t want to set up a barbaric militia through community policing. Their role is to give police information and masqueraders will be dealt with as criminals," said the OCPD.

The OCPD admitted there are weaknesses in the community policing set up currently but explained the issue was being addressed.