Nairobi News

A breed of thugs have made Uhuru Park their favourite hunting ground. But you will be surprised to discover that the criminal ring comprise people you would never suspect.

For one these thugs are usually smartly-dressed and well-groomed. Most of them are also very fluent in English and Swahili.

But beware, these are most streetwise thugs you will possibly encounter in Nairobi.

Mr Albert Kimaiga, knows this all too well from personal experience.

It all started on a day he had walked from his residence in Kibera slums for a job-hunting mission in the city center. All his efforts however bore no fruits on that particular day.

Exhausted and disappointed, he embarked on the long walk back home. But when he got to Uhuru Park he decided to relax before proceeding with his journey.

ROBBED

“I was very tired and I decided to spend a little time at the park. I dozed off and when I woke up I was startled to realise that I had lost my phone,” Kimaiga narrated.

He explains that he chose to seat a short distance from two well-dressed gentlemen since he thought it was safer to stay away from street urchins who were lurking in the vicinity.

“Immediately I woke up, the street urchins informed me that two men had just robbed me. ‘Hao wamekuibia brathe, nawakajitoa (they have stolen from you and disappeared)'”, he told Nairobi News.

A certain Hillary Osinde hold the view that the smarter you are to a well-dressed fellow, the higher the chances that you will be mugged.

Just like Kimaiga, Osinde once found himself at Uhuru Park after walking for a while. He decided to take a nap. He removed his sweater and used it as a pillow before dozing off.

“In my sleep I felt someone digging into my pocket and grabbing my wallet. I tried to move but couldn’t. I could see them, but I was very dizzy,” says Osinde, who suspects he was drugged by the muggers.

MUGGED

When he came back to his senses a couple told him he had just been mugged by a well-dressed man.

“The couple told me that they witnessed the whole incident but were afraid of intervening,” Osinde said.

He lost his mobile phone, Sh2,000 and his sweater. Since then he has never ventured into the park.

Ms Mary Mutembei, who hawks ice cream in the park told Nairobi News that such incidents are a commonplace.

She however lauded the police for their frequent patrols in the park and arresting suspects.

“The arrests have seen insecurity incidents reduce but they need to do more,” she said.

Nairobi News has established that the muggers have ready markets for the stolen phones in stalls that deal with second-hand phones within the city.