Five killed after police vehicle runs over explosive in Lamu
An armoured police vehicle. Five people died on May 31, 2017 after an armoured police vehicle ran over an explosive device in Lamu. FILE PHOTO | NATION MEDIA GROUP
Four police officers and a civilian died after their armoured vehicle ran over a home-made bomb in Lamu.
The explosive is suspected to have been planted by Al-Shabaab militants between Milimani and the Baure military camp in Basuba, Lamu East, early Wednesday morning.
Two police officers from the Rapid Border Patrol Unit (RBPU) who were in the vehicle are missing, according to an officer on the ground, who requested not to be named because he is not authorised to speak to the news media.
The officers from the Mangai RBPU camp were heading to Mokowe for refuelling when the attack happened.
ATTACKED
Police sources on the ground said military officers from the Baure camp responded immediately but they were also attacked on the way to the scene by the militants.
But the KDF officers managed to reach the scene of the explosion.
The area covering Basuba and Lamu East is under tight security after the government launched the multi-agency Operation Linda Boni in September 2015.
The objective of the campaign is to flush out Al-Shabaab militants believed to be hiding in the expansive Boni forest.
Lamu County Commissioner Joseph Kanyiri and Operation Linda Boni Director James Ole Seriani did not answer phone calls seeking comment.
