Meru: 6 Arraigned For Stealing Loaded A47 Rifle From Police Station, Burning Female Officer's House

• According to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), the suspects had attended a funeral in Igembe Central
• They incited the mourners to raid the Antubeiga Police Post where they made away with an AK47 rifle after burning an officer's house
• Armed with the stolen rifle, the six-man gang proceeded to the Muringene Police Station where they overpowered the officers and aided the escape of all the prisoners

Six suspects from Meru county's Igember Central are detained as investigations into their conduct continue.

They were accused of raiding a police post and robbing a police officer of his AK47 firearm before proceeding to another station where they freed inmates.

The gang comprises David Kaberia Kobia, Felix Kimathi Mutheria, Benard Mutuma alias Toto, Pius Ntongai, Eliud Mukiri Kalatu and Erastus Mwenda Kaibutia.

As narrated by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), the suspects had attended a funeral before leaving with a mob and proceeded to the Antubeiga Police Post where they stole the foregoing rifle.

Inmates freed

They proceeded to the Muringene Police Station where they overpowered the officers and aided the escape of all the prisoners, before destroying all the station's stationeries and furniture, then shattered window panes of the police line and the chief's office.

The DCI stated that the heads of security in the region established that the raids were by some die-hard criminals, who were out to rob police firearms for use in their undertakings.

Specialised units detectives from the DCI Nairobi headquarters, including Crime Research and Operations, detectives were deployed to join their Meru counterparts in a rigorous manhunt for the dreaded ruffians.

On December 8, Mwenda, the mastermind of the gang, was flushed out of his hideout in Nanyuki, and after a brief interrogation by the DCI, led them to VIP Bar located at Nturuba Market within Igembe Central.

A search in one of the rooms occupied by another member of the gang, Mutheria, led to the recovery of a pistol that was hidden under the mattress.

Mutheria, upon his arrest and interrogation, revealed that the firearm belonged to his partner-in-crime, Kalatu.

A quick profiling by the crime research team established that Kalatu had an ongoing case of murder at the Meru High Court, where he and others who have been on the run are charged.

On December 9, intelligence leads circled a homestead at Kiengu sub-county in Igembe South, where Kalatu and Mutuma, alias Toto, 28 were arrested.

Visiting prayer mountain

Sleuths believed that the two had since taken possession of the stolen police rifle, but the hardened duo made it their (detectives) assignment to unravel the mystery.

A trail on the suspects' movement indicated that they had been visiting a nearby prayer mountain (Thangaa Prayer Mountain), but from the look, none appeared to have been praying for the good of anyone.

After moments of search on the mountain, detectives identified a point where the region's fertile earth had been disturbed, and upon digging, retrieved the police rifle with an empty magazine stashed in a gunny bag.

On December 10, the detectives embarked on a search for the missing rounds of ammunition, 14 of which were found buried a safe distance outside the VIP Bar located along the Maua-Kangeta road, which is owned by Kalatu.

The suspects were arraigned on Thursday, December 14; the Maua Law Courts denied them a bond.

The case was slated for mention on scheduling the case mention for January 10, 2024.