Police: How Iranian terror suspects were to be sneaked out of country
Anti-Terror Police Unit (ATPU) have narrated sensational details to a court about a plot to sneak two Iranian terror suspects out of the country that was hatched by Iranian ambassador to Kenya Hadi Farajvand.
ATPU investigator Geoffrey Busolo told a court on Monday that the suspects, Ahmad Abolfathi Mohammed and Sayed Mansour Mousavi, were to flee on February 11 using air tickets purchased by the ambassador and temporary Iranian passports issued by the embassy.
“The diplomat booked air tickets and the two were scheduled to flee the country on February 11 with Qatar Airways. We are still pursuing various leads and other individuals who were involved,” Mr Busolo said.
SH15M REWARD
Prisons officer Wesley Kiptanui Kipkemoi, lawyer Robin Bundi Nyangaresi, and Ghanaian Shemgrant Agyei were to help in the escape. They would have received Ksh 15 million for securing the escape.
Police say their investigations show that Kipkemoi was introduced to the Iranian diplomat by one A. Okello between May and June last year. They met twice with senior diplomats from the Iranian embassy before he was introduced to another man identified only as Noor.
“The investigations are very complex since we have to review several CCTV footages retrieved from several hotels where they met with the Iranian diplomat and their phone data. They had also been given a lot of money,” said prosecutor Duncan Ondimu.
The Iranian ambassador has however refuted the claims by police, admitting to attempting to seek the release of the terror suspects but through the legal means.
He accused Wesley Kiptanui Kipkemoi and Shemgrant Agyei of trying to extort from him under the disguise of being high ranking Interior Ministry officials.
The two claimed to be in a position of securing the release of the Iranian nationals but at a fee, he said.
SABOTAGE RELATIONS
He said certain unnamed countries are working to sabotage relations between Iran and Kenya.
“Whenever we offer something to Kenya for the development of Kenya, I think there are some hands, invisible hands behind those activities that bring some issue to the media which is really not important,” he said.
“I can’t say which country, but we definitely believe that there are some countries that do not like Iran and Kenya to have good relations,” he added.
The terror suspects, Mohammad and Mousavi, were arrested in Nairobi in June 2012 and led the police to Mombasa Golf Course where 15kgs of RDX explosives were found.
The chief magistrate’s court found them guilty of the offenses and sentenced them to life imprisonment which was later reduced to 15 years after an appeal at the High Court. The Court of Appeal later set them free.
The Director of Public Prosecutions subsequently appealed at the Supreme Court. The court ordered for their continued detention pending determination of the appeal.