Police have arrested two persons of interest and seized an AK-47 rifle following a shooting incident in the Hambaburo area of Tana River County, the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) announced Sunday, March 23, 2025.
According to the DCI’s statement, a joint operation conducted by officers from the Charidende General Service Unit (GSU) camp and the Charidende police station led to the apprehension of the two individuals.
The arrests followed a distress call reporting an attack on four herders tending to their livestock, prompting an immediate police response.
“Responding swiftly, the officers conducted a thorough search of a Manyatta house linked to one of the suspects, leading to the following recoveries: an AK-47, snugly wrapped in sacks and concealed under the floor, two AK-47 magazines and 118 rounds of 7.62 x 39mm ammunition,” the DCI statement read.
The two arrested men, aged 31 and 19, are currently in police custody as authorities prepare to charge them in court.
The seized firearm, along with the magazines and ammunition, has been secured as evidence, police said.
The incident has raised fresh concerns about the proliferation of illegal firearms and rising insecurity in parts of Kenya, particularly in the northern and eastern regions.
The arrests come amid heightened tensions following a deadly Al-Shabab attack in neighbouring Garissa County earlier on Sunday.
At least six people were killed and four others injured when militants raided a national police reserve camp in Biyamadhow, near the Kenya-Somalia border.
Police spokesman Michael Muchiri confirmed the pre-dawn assault, which occurred around 5:30 am, stating that the attackers overran the camp, shot and stabbed victims, and ransacked the site before fleeing.
Security reinforcements have since been deployed to pursue the assailants.
The Garissa attack underscores the persistent threat posed by the Somalia-based Al-Shabab group, which has repeatedly targeted Kenyan security forces and civilians in the border regions.
Authorities have intensified operations in the affected areas, vowing to curb the circulation of illicit firearms and bolster security along the porous border.
Kenya-Somalia border, an area frequently breached by Al-Shabab militants.
Martin Oduor
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