Police nab four suspects, seize AK-47 and pistols in Nairobi robbery bust
Police said the armed gang, described as highly organized, had instilled fear among residents, with multiple cases reported involving loss of property and cash.
Four suspects, three of them Ugandan nationals, were apprehended in Nairobi during a police operation that also led to the recovery of three firearms.
Authorities say the group was plotting a robbery in the Eastleigh area before officers moved in on Thursday.
The recovered weapons included an AK-47 rifle and two pistols. Detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) had been tracking the suspects based on intelligence linked to a spike in violent robberies across Nairobi and parts of western Kenya.
Police said the armed gang, described as highly organized, had instilled fear among residents, with multiple cases reported involving loss of property and cash.
Investigators, through profiling and crime scene analysis, managed to place the suspects at the center of these incidents.
On May 22, officers arrested the four -three Ugandans and one Kenyan- in separate locations within Saika, Dandora, and Huruma.
Nairobi regional police commander George Seda hailed the arrests as a major step in tackling rising crime, noting that additional suspects are being pursued.
During questioning, one suspect led police to a rented house in Saika, where officers uncovered a Falcon pistol loaded with 11 rounds, hidden beneath a pillow.
In a continuation of the police operation, another suspect led officers to his residence in Dandora, where an AK-47 rifle — loaded with 30 rounds of 7.62×39mm special ammunition — was found concealed beneath a sofa.
The weapon had a defaced serial number, raising further suspicions about its origin.
A third suspect was picked up in Huruma after investigations linked him to the ownership of the recovered rifle.
Authorities revealed that the three Ugandan nationals had entered Kenya through the Malaba border on May 21, shortly after allegedly committing a robbery in Eastleigh before fleeing to Uganda.
The fourth suspect, a Kenyan residing in Githurai 45, was nabbed in the Pumwani area. Officers recovered a Palleberum FEG pistol from him.
Police believe the group, along with accomplices still at large, has been behind multiple robberies across Nairobi and parts of Western Kenya.
At the time of arrest, the suspects were allegedly planning another heist in Eastleigh.
Nairobi regional police commander George Seda confirmed that the manhunt for the remaining members of the gang continues.
In a separate incident, a man surrendered an AK-47 rifle with nine rounds of ammunition to authorities in Garbatulla.
The firearm was surrendered to a local chief in Modogashe North sub-location, within Komorbulla location.
Authorities have since launched forensic analysis of the rifle to determine whether it may have been used in any criminal activities in the region.
