Wanted Rogo ally speaks from hideout

• Mr Ahmed claimed there is a plot by Kenyan security agencies supported by outside forces to assassinate him.

Mr Said Abubaker Shariff Ahmed alias Makaburi, who is wanted in connection with the Mombasa riots has claimed he is a target of a police hit squad.

Last week, police obtained a warrant of arrest for Mr Ahmed, who they blame for the violence that followed the killing of Al-Shabaab suspect Aboud Rogo.

Four people, including three security agents, were killed in two days of chaos in which four churches were also looted and torched.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with the Nation from his hideout in the coastal town, Mr Ahmed claimed there is a plot by Kenyan security agencies supported by outside forces to assassinate him.

He admitted that Sheikh Rogo, who was accused by the United Nations and the US of being Al-Shabaab’s chief agent in Kenya, was his close associate and best friend.

He also appeared to suggest that he had links with the Somalia terror group by saying that youths in Mombasa had asked him how they could get help from the rebels to avenge Sheikh Rogo’s killing.

“Youths have asked me if they can get help from Al-Shabaab,” he said. Mr Ahmed said Kenya, whose forces have been fighting Al-Shabaab in Somalia since last year, should leave the Horn of Africa country alone.

The Kenya Defence Forces, he said, was leading an illegal fight in Somalia. “Al-Shabaab are Somalis. They should be left to rule Somalia ... not a bunch of people who meet in Nairobi hotels to declare themselves rulers of Somalia.”

He added that while Al-Shabaab have not armed him, the Kenyan and US governments were after his life. “We are certain that there is a hit squad targeting Muslim clerics and other Muslims perceived to be extremists.

"These mercenaries are monitoring our phones, our lives and then killing us. We believe that American, British and Israeli security agencies are involved,” Mr Ahmed said.

According to the police, Mr Ahmed incited youths to avenge Sheikh Rogo’s death through violent riots aimed at churches and Christians.

Brutal murder

“The brutal murder of Muslim cleric Aboud Rogo has saddened us. While his death is being investigated, we will hunt down those responsible for the violent demonstrations and arrest them. They can hide from justice for now, but not forever,” Coast province police chief Aggrey Adoli said.

On Sunday, the Coast PCIO, a Mr Muasya, said police were still on the trail of Mr Ahmed and other suspects over the violence. Also in their crosshairs is Sheikh Abu Qatada, who also spoke to the Nation on Sunday.

The 43-year-old said that he kept away from the demonstrations because he expected the police to link him with whatever was happening.

“I was not there. I was at home and the only time I left the house was when I went to see Rogo’s wife who was in hospital. I was afraid that the police might also kill her.”

Mr Ahmed asked this Nation reporter to rush to Mombasa and meet him before his assassination. After almost two days of playing hide-and-seek games, his confidants led the reporter to his hideout located near a mosque.

Mr Ahmed is one of the three Kenyans on the US government Sanctions List for alleged involvement in terror activities. (READ: Obama blacklists three Kenyans over links with Al-Shabaab militants)