Police have apprehended a person of interest believed to be a key player in an organized syndicate smuggling stolen vehicles across the Kenya-Tanzania border.
According to a statement shared by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) on Monday, November 11, 2024, the arrest was made by officers from Loitoktok Police Station
The police say the arrested individual is a persistent target of law enforcement officers. The police intercepted him while driving a white Toyota Dyna mini-truck, registration number KCG 508Q, which had been reported stolen. DCI said the officers noticed the vehicle during a routine patrol and immediately recognized it as the subject of a recent theft report.
“A notorious cross-border car theft person of interest who has long been a thorn in the side of law enforcement has finally been apprehended. Thanks to the sharp-eyed officers from Loitoktok Police Station, a stolen vehicle a white Toyota Dyna mini-truck with the registration number KCG 508Q has been successfully recovered,” the DCI statement read in part.
As the officers approached, the man abandoned the vehicle and attempted to escape on foot. An intense chase ensued, ultimately ending with his arrest. The police escorted him back to Loitoktok Police Station, where further investigations revealed disturbing details of the syndicate’s operations.
According to the DCI, the man is a central figure in a larger network targeting unsuspecting vehicle owners across the region. The stolen vehicles are taken across the border into a neighbouring country, where they are quickly sold at drastically reduced prices.
“While on a routine patrol, the vigilant officers spotted the suspect behind the wheel of the vehicle. Sensing the heat was on, the man made a break for it, abandoning the truck and sprinting away. However, the officers were hot on his heels, leading to a swift chase ending in his arrest,” DCI stated.
“The suspect was escorted to Loitoktok Police Station, where further interrogation unveiled a deeply unsettling truth, the man is a key player in an organized car theft syndicate that has been systematically robbing unsuspecting members of the public. The stolen vehicles are then smuggled across the border into a neighbouring country and sold at rock-bottom prices.”
The law enforcement officers said that they also discovered that the Toyota Dyna recovered by police was taken from its owner, a 32-year-old man named Evans Havi, under violent circumstances.
Havi was found unconscious at Kalii guest house, where it is believed that the person of interest had overpowered him before making off with the vehicle. Police suspect that tactics involving stupefying drugs were used in the attack, a disturbing method becoming more common in similar incidents.
“It was further established that the recovered vehicle had been stolen from a 32-year-old man Evans Havi, who was found unconscious at Kalii guest house. It is believed that Muchiri dragged Havi before making his escape with the vehicle. The suspect is in police custody, undergoing processing as detectives prepare for his arraignment while the recovered motor vehicle is being detained as an exhibit,” the authorities reported.