Police detain city driver linked to crime ring

A court on Monday allowed a request from the Director of Public Prosecutions to detain a driver accused of being part of a gang drugging and robbing female passengers in Nairobi, so that his accomplices can be traced.

“The suspect is a driver of a passenger service vehicle suspected to be involved in an offence where a lady was robbed of her personal belongings.

We seek 14 days to complete investigations,” State lawyer Duncan Ondimu said.

Senior Resident Magistrate Hellen Onkwani directed that Mr Patrick Kinyanjui Thuku be detained at Kilimani police station so that investigations are finalised.

The prosecution told the court that the matter has elicited public interest, adding it has turned out to be a complex issue which requires all leads to be pursued.

Mr Thuku was arrested on Sunday after a complaint was filed the previous day at Kilimani station, accusing him of trying to drug and robbing a passenger, Ms Karimi Mwari, in a matatu registration number KAS 253V.

The driver together with his accomplices, who have not yet been arrested, are said to have robbed Ms Mwari an iphone 6s, ATM card, identity card and Sh4,000 cash.

The prosecution disclosed that photos which Ms Mwari took during the incident using her other cell phone that exposed the matatu and its driver have been subjected to forensic examination.

PASSENGERS DRUGGED

Ms Mwari’s statement indicated that at the time the incident occurred, two other female passengers appeared to have been drugged.

“There is need to trace the two other possible victims. Mr Thuku’s associates are still at large and his release will interfere with the process,” the court was told.

The court also heard that there have been numerous complaints of theft from passengers in PSVs, hence the need for more time to investigate the matter adequately.

Ms Mwari’s case happened after she boarded the matatu heading to City Centre in the company of two other female passengers at Nakumatt Prestige on Ngong Road in Nairobi.

While she opted to sit at the co-driver’s seat, the other two sat behind her and the journey was cut short when the said vehicle approached the Kenyatta National Hospital stage.

She has accused Mr Thuku whose photo she had managed to take, of preventing her from alighting from the said matatu by grabbing her bag and pulling her to the inside.

The shocking incident caught the public eye following her post on social media-Facebook account where she had narrated her ordeal hence raised concern on the security of passengers in matatus. The case will be mentioned on November 7