Central Regional Commissioner insists two suspects were felled in ambush
Two of the suspected bank robbers subdued by police.
Central Region Regional Commissioner Fredrick Shisia has defended police officers in Murang’a who are accused of executing two robbery with violence suspects saying they were defending themselves.
During a press briefing in Nyeri, Mr Shisia said the two suspects were caught in crossfire after members of a gang operating in the Kigumo constituency opened fire at the officers during a search of two guns that were snatched from police officers on patrol in the area.
The gang is believed to be linked to the two suspects said to have stolen Sh1.14 million from Unaitas Sacco in the county.
“Police officers are not responsible for the killing…they were confronted by a group of people we believe were part of these suspects,” he said.
According to the RC, the robbers were apprehended following a tip-off from members of the public while leaving a forest that served as their hideout.
They had bags stashed with some of the stolen cash.
“Once the robbers were arrested, they confided to the officers that they knew where the guns were hidden…upon getting to the forest, other gang members opened fire at the officers to our surprise and the two suspects were caught in the crossfire,” he said.
Stolen from law enforcers
He further stated that though no officer was injured, the gang members dropped the guns –an AK47 and G3-- that they were using. After an assessment, the guns were found to be those stolen from law enforcers.
“We are concerned about how they used the guns because the AK47 was stolen with 30 ammunition and during recovery, only 14 were recovered… the G3 rifle had 12 ammunition and upon recovery, it had eight,” said Mr Shisia.
He went on to say that the police are pursuing the other gang members that took off during the shootout.
“We have their names and we are in pursuit of them… they will be brought to book in due course,” he added.
He assured residents in Kigumo of maximum security, urging them to go about their business without fear of confrontation with the extorting gang members.
“As far as the Central region is concerned, we are not going to tolerate criminal gangs. Members of the public should go on with their day-to-day business without fear,” said Mr Shisia.
He invited the Independent Police Oversight Authority (Ipoa) to carry out their independent investigations concerning the incident stating there was nothing to hide.
“They were not killed by our officers. We invite Ipoa to investigate any conduct that they perceive may have been done by officers that is outside the law…let them carry out the investigation and what comes out of it will give us a different outlook,” he said.
He called on the public to commend, support and encourage police officers when they do a good job.
“Where we have issues let the respective agencies carry out investigations and the results shall be declared to the masses,” he said.
