Three robbers dead in shootout at Migori hotel

Allaxis Hotel in Migori County where police foiled a robbery attempt. PHOTO | IAN BYRON | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • The three were part of a gang of six thugs on a mission to execute a robbery at Allaxis hotel on Sunday evening.

Three suspected robbers are dead after they were shot by police following a fire exchange at a hotel in Migori County.

They were part of a gang of six thugs on a mission to execute a robbery at Allaxis Hotel on Sunday evening.

According to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), the robbers found detectives waiting for them at the hotel which is located along the Migori-Rongo road.

DCI officers had gone to the hotel early upon receiving intelligence on the planned robbery. They laid an ambush on the suspected robbers who were on motorcycles.

OPENED FIRE

According to Migori County Police Commander Celestino Nyaga, the robbers raided the hotel at 8.35pm.

“Our detectives laid an ambush and ordered the assailants to surrender but, instead, they opened fire on police who responded by gunning down three men,” he said.

The other three escaped with gunshot wounds.

Bodies of the three were taken to Migori Level Four Hospital mortuary.

A DCI detective was also shot in the right shoulder and is in a stable condition in hospital.

One AK-47 rifle loaded with 16 rounds of ammunition, a torch, a rungu, among other items, were recovered.

Police have since launched a hunt for the escaped suspects.

GROWING INSECURITY

Mr Nyaga called on locals to remain vigilant and report any suspicious people to avert future attacks.

Migori town and its environs have, in the recent past, been hit by a spate of violence.

Earlier in February, residents of Oruba estate and Masara trading centre on the outskirts of Migori town decried an upsurge in insecurity incidents after machete-wielding gangs reigned terror on locals.

Two businessmen were killed at Masara trading centre while a middle-aged woman was hacked to death as she left her house for work in the wee hours of the morning.

Editor's note: An earlier version of this story quoted the DCI which had reported two dead. The Migori County police commander, however, confirmed that three robbers were killed in the incident.