The Kenyan Government on Friday, November 1, announced that it had returned four high-end vehicles, which were stolen from the United Kingdom on different dates between November 2018 and April 2019.
The four top-of-the-range cars are: Range Rover Vogue Autobiography, which was stolen from Berkshire, UK on January 10, 2019 and seized in Mombasa on April 12, 2019; Range Rover Sport stolen from London, UK on November 11, 2018 and seized in Mombasa on April 12, 2019; Mercedes Benz GLE 250D AMG stolen from Berkshire, UK on February 1, 2019; and Range Rover Sport stolen from Oxfordshire, UK on February 7, 2019 and intercepted in Mombasa on April 24, 2019.
“These vehicles will be received in the UK by police authorities. UK police will undertake further law enforcement measures and reunite the vehicles with their rightful owners,” said the KRA, the National Police Service and the Kenya Ports Authority in a joint press statement dated November 1.
KRA and KPA say they have been working with the DCI, Kenyan police force and INTERPOL to dismantle the international car-theft syndicate that has been using the Mombasa port to smuggle into the country vehicles stolen from foreign nations.
Police say at least 21 vehicles stolen from the UK have been intercepted in Mombasa, and so far, six of the 21 cars have been shipped back to UK.
“In June 2019, two vehicles – a Range Rover Sport and a BMW X5 – were successfully returned to the UK.
“In returning the vehicles, we wish to send a strong message to criminal networks in East Africa and beyond, that the port of Mombasa will not be used as a conduit for illicit trade,” said the agencies in their joint press release.
Police say they will deal accordingly with the criminals who imported the vehicles to Kenya.