Mandera police allowed to hold 4 in human trafficking probe

From left: Mr Maulid Nuno Hassan, Mr Abdi Malack Liban, Ms Gibey Mohamud Adan and Ms Sowda Isman Jella at Mandera Law Courts on October 17, 2018. They will be held for 10 days as police investigate alleged human trafficking charges against them. PHOTO | MANASE OTSIALO | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • Police also said they need time to trace the real owners of the two ID cards.
  • State Counsel Allen Mulama said the four were arrested on Tuesday aboard a Nairobi-bound bus.
  • Ms Adan and Ms Jella told the court that the IDs they had were not theirs.

A court in Mandera has allowed the police to hold a bus driver, his conductor and two passengers for 10 days to complete investigations into possible human trafficking.

Mr Abdi Malack Liban, a driver with Desert Cruiser Bus Company, his conductor, Maulid Nuno Hassan, Ms Gibey Mohumed Adan and Ms Sowda Isman Jella did not object to the police request.

State Counsel Allen Mulama said the four were arrested on Tuesday aboard a Nairobi-bound bus on the outskirts of Mandera town.

A sworn affidavit by Happi Mohamednoor, a police officer at Mandera Police Station, indicated that the four colluded to evade police checks during the morning drive.

“The third and fourth respondents boarded the bus after it had left after the morning police check at Mandera Police Station and it is suspected that it was a well-calculated ploy to avoid detection,” he said.

KENYAN IDS

The two women were found in possession of Kenyan identification cards while they are suspected to be Somalia nationals.

“Such crimes are of organised nature and are extra-territorial. We require time to confirm the antecedents of the third and fourth respondents,” read the affidavit.

Police also said they need time to trace the real owners of the two ID cards.

The State counsel told the court that another suspect evaded arrest and is still at large.

AGREED TO BE HELD

While responding to the application, the driver and his conductor agreed to be held for the period requested by the police.

Ms Adan and Ms Jella told the court that the IDs they had were not theirs but they did not reveal how they obtained them.

“I am an Ethiopian national and I was given the ID of someone else here in Mandera town,” said Ms Adan.

Ms Jella said she is 16 and that she had worked in Mandera town as a househelp but was headed to Nairobi.

Mandera Resident Magistrate Dancun Mtai Wednesday directed that the respondents be held at Mandera Border Post Police Station until October 23 when the case will be mentioned.