Detectives have nabbed 810 litres of ethanol, fake Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) stamps and assorted liquor bottles in the Thone Grove area of Kitengela, Kajiado County in a major illegal brew crackdown.
One suspect was arrested with others managing to flee during the raid in a warehouse situated within a high-end estate.
Police raided the illegal distiller following a tip-off from members of the public.
Locals were spooked by frequent cars going in and out of the said home in the wee hours of the night before recently discovering the fenced-off home was a warehouse structure.
The estate members waylaid a vehicle exiting the home and discovered it was ferrying jerricans of an unknown substance prompting them to call the police.
“We have been suspicious about this particular home in our estate. In our recent meeting, we enhanced security measures of our estate by making it mandatory to inspect all vehicles including those of our known members. The driver of the vehicle which was ferrying the ethanol from the suspicious house declined to have the vehicle inspected and instead rushed back. We called nyumba kumi team and police to assist us in identifying what luggage the vehicle was ferrying, ” Sammy Kimutai the estate chairman chair said.
Detectives from Kitengela led by the Officer Commanding Station (OCS) David Ole Shani raided the warehouse gaining forceful entry before intercepting the ethanol and other paraphernalia believed to have been utilized in packaging illegal brew.
The front of the warehouse depicts a homely environment consisting of cloth lines, firewood, chickens and ducks.
Inside the unkempt warehouse, there were a few household items and a heap of unpacked hay grass which covered jerricans containing the ethanol.
Isinya Sub County Police Commander Patrick Manyasi says the raid is a major breakthrough in the ongoing illicit brew fight.
Manyasi says cartels involved in the business are now operating in the most cavalier manner, carrying out the illegal business in the least suspicious areas.
The sub-county police commander says the fight against the brew is proving fruitful due to cooperation from members of the public who are volunteering information.
The police boss further warned that the illegal brew crackdown will be intensified beyond just urban centres to weed out the vice.
“We have teeth to bite and there is no form of craftness the cartels will use to evade the wrath of law. We are grateful because the working relationship between police and wananchi has improved over time and locals are giving crucial information that is making our work easier.
“We suspect the ethanol which is subject to test at the government laboratory is diluted with water before being packed in respective liquor brands. The warehouse might also have been utilized as a warehouse for storing ethanol in transit to illegal liquor distilleries,” Manyasi said.
The police commander further warned wananchi against consuming cheap liquor saying it endangers their lives.
“The cheap illegal brew is a killer. Consumers should know that those involved in the mixing of ethanol and other substances have no quality and standard measures, they are in business to make quick cash at the expense of life,” added Manyasi.
The owner of the home, who is at large, is well known by the estate members who say he does not attend security meetings amid their concern that he has also been supplying the illegal brew to youths within the estate.
A suspect who was the driver of the vehicle KDL 360X (Noah Model) is being detained at Kitengela police station waiting to be arraigned at Kajiado law court on Tuesday.
The vehicle has since been towed at the Kitengela police station along the exhibits.
