17 people of Ethiopian origin suspected to be victims of human trafficking have been rescued as police arrested a driver and his assistant.
According to a statement shared by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), detectives from the Transnational Organized Crime Unit (TOCU) executed the operation acting on intelligence.
“DCI’s Transnational Organized Crime Unit (TOCU) detectives have today arrested a driver and his turnboy, and rescued 17 persons believed to be victims of human trafficking; a serious crime and a grave violation of human rights,” the statement read.
The DCI sleuths set up a trap at Makupa bridge, where they intercepted an Isuzu lorry with the registration number KCL 849M, driven by Richard Mbeke.
“Acting on intelligence, the sleuths laid a trap at Makupa bridge where they intercepted an Isuzu lorry Reg. No. KCL 849M that was being driven by Richard Mbeke,” DCI stated.
Upon inspection, the officers found 17 men of Ethiopian origin hidden in the lorry’s carriage. These men were promptly rescued and taken to Makupa Police Station along with the lorry’s driver, Richard Mbeke, and his assistant, Joseph Ndung’u.
The DCI confirmed that the entire group will be presented in court on Thursday morning in Mombasa.
“Upon opening the lorry’s carriage, 17 men of Ethiopian origin were rescued from therein and escorted to Makupa Police Station in the company of the lorry’s driver and his turnboy Joseph Ndung’u. The entire group will be arraigned Thursday morning at a Mombasa court.”
90 Ethiopian males
In February 2024, authorities were pursuing a syndicate suspected of deceiving young men with false job offers and subsequently trafficking them to unknown destinations. Geoffrey Kinuthia, a suspect, was detained by police for further investigation after being caught transporting 90 Ethiopian males.
Kinuthia was driving a truck with the registration number KCB 548K when he was stopped at a roadblock on Imbirikani Road along Loitoktok Road on the evening of Monday, February 19, 2024. Police became suspicious after hearing restless voices and yelling from the truck. Kinuthia claimed ignorance, stating he had merely been hired as a driver and was unaware of the nature of his cargo. He said he had been instructed to deliver the load to a man known only as Ken in Loitoktok.
“Ordinarily the route has a big number of canters and lorries because of the lucrative tomato and onion business in Loitoktok. We noted the canter was speeding and we stopped it at the roadblock. While questioning the driver over speeding, we heard voices of restless people and some coughs. When we ordered the driver to open the canter we found 90 males. They were congested and others were sitting on top of others, they seem to have been packed like luggage to fit into the lorry,” the officer manning the roadblock said.
The officer noted that the males, who appeared weak, exhausted, and hungry, faced communication difficulties due to a language barrier. Most of the foreigners, identified as Ethiopians, were teenage boys aged around 10, with a few older youths.
The incident was logged at Imbirikani Police Station under OB number 05/19/02/2024. Given the porous nature of the borders between Kenya and Tanzania at Loitoktok and Namanga, the detained foreigners and the vehicle were held at Oloitoktok Police Station pending further investigation.
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