Two suspects arrested for kidnapping woman, stealing Sh645k in Kiambu
Two men suspected of abducting a woman three days ago in Juja, Kiambu County, Central Kenya, and stealing over Sh645,000 from her have been arrested by detectives.
Laban Chomba Muthini and Peter Mugera Maburi, are said to have robbed the woman, blindfolded her, and abandoned her at Githingiri Estate near Thika Greens Gatanga in Murang’a County on Saturday, December 16.
The pair were arrested after the vehicle they were using was intercepted after a road chase with Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) Operations sleuths.
According to the victim, the intercepted vehicle, occupied by two men and a woman, had pulled over beside her on the morning of December 16, and one of the men flung the door open, forcing her to board lest she got seriously injured.
“Once inside, she was blindfolded and ordered to give her mobile money and bank account PINs where over Sh585,000 was withdrawn and transferred to six registered lines, and another Sh80,000 in cash stolen from her purse,” she told the police.
The DCI says that the woman cooperated with the demands of the assailants, which led to the suspects throwing her out of the vehicle in Murang’a.
“Having cooperated and pleading for dear life, she was thrown out of the vehicle at 8pm that night, where good Samaritans helped her to Samuru police station where she formally reported before the case was referred to the Operations team,” said the DCI.
After the arrest, an ID parade was conducted where the victim positively identified the two suspects, who were then presented before a magistrate at Kiambu Law Courts.
The court allowed the detectives to detain the suspects pending investigations.
Last month, detectives rescued two 21-year-old university students who were reportedly kidnapped on October 27, 2023.
The students, the DCI said, were separately lured to an Airbnb in Kitengela, Kajiado County, by a yet-to-be-identified female suspect, where they encountered two armed men who held them captive while demanding a Sh6 million ransom from their kin.
Police said that Brian Ombasa Omoso, 25, and Humphrey Hinga, 22, who were arrested, are believed to have been working jointly with the female dangerous damsel on the loose to identify and lure targeted victims in their no-sweat approach to soft life.
A fake gun, a dagger, multiple SIM cards, and a bogus vehicle registration license were recovered at the scene.