Off-duty ‘police officer’ among robbers killed in shootout
A man who possessed a police identification card was among the three robbers gunned down in Nakuru Town on Friday during a fierce shootout.
Police, acting on a tip-off, killed three heavily armed robbers, who were trailing a businessman who had withdrawn cash from a bank near Hotel Waterbuck.
In the dramatic shootout, police seized an AK-47 rifle, a Ceska pistol and more than 20 bullets.
County police boss Hassan Barua on Friday said they received crucial leads from members of the public, who identified the slain robbers.
“A member of the public approached a police officer at the scene and in confidence said he knew one of the robbers,” Mr Barua said.
GANG’S HIDEOUT
He added that the information was accurate and that they raided the gang’s hideout in Lanet where they found police jungle uniforms, three vehicles and vehicle number plates.
The vehicles — a grey Toyota Axio (KCB 345M), a white Toyota NZE (KBN 667B) and a green Toyota Corolla (KWY 626) — were found in the compound and were towed to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) offices.
“We also found a police identification card matching the slain robber [but] we can’t reveal the name as investigations are ongoing,” Mr Barua said.
He said investigators were working with the Kenya Police Service headquarters to ascertain whether the officer was still in the force or had been terminated.
STOLEN PISTOL
Speaking at the Central Police Station in Nakuru, where he displayed the seized items, the police boss said the Ceska pistol had been stolen from a police officer.
“The pistol was stolen from one of my officers years back and the officer who lost the firearm is on interdiction for the loss,” he said.
He said the gang, posing as police officers, had been terrorising motorists on the Nairobi-Nakuru-Eldoret highway.
He urged any person whose vehicle was been stolen to report to the DCI offices in Nakuru Town.
