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Matatu operator killed as Mungiki sect retaliates
Suspected members of the outlawed Mungiki sect have retaliated and killed a matatu operator following Monday’s chaos which led to the burning of houses belonging to the sect members in Kiambu district.
They also hacked and seriously wounded two other matatu crew members in the Banana area of Kiambu during the Tuesday morning skirmishes.
Those wounded were rushed to Kiambu District Hospital where they were admitted in serious but stable condition.
Witnesses and Police said trouble started when suspected members of the outlawed sect re-grouped in Kiambu town before they raided Banana and Karuri where they confronted the matatu crews whom they accused of torching their houses.
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“It was a major standoff because the two groups were armed with machetes. After a brief argument, they started chasing one another into remote villages where the matatu crew member was cornered and slashed to death,” a witness said.
Two others were slashed but managed to escape with serious injuries.
Police later arrived and dispersed the warring groups and arrested several others who are likely to appear in Court charged with various offences among them causing disturbance.
“We cannot tolerate such acts of violence where people have decided to abuse the laws at will,” Central Provincial Criminal Investigations Officer Sebastian Ndaru said.
Ndaru said they have arrested more than 30 suspects in connection with the two days of chaos which has paralyzed transport in the area.
By the time we went to press, matatus operating the Kiambu, Banana and Karuri routes were still grounded.
Anti-riot police officers backed by the Administration Police were still patrolling the area searching for the matatu crews and the Mungiki adherents.
“We now fear for our lives because we cannot risk operating our matatus. These people (Mungiki) have threatened to kill anyone who is found operating a matatu,” a matatu driver who only identified himself as Ng’ang’a said.
Security was tight even in rural villages where the suspects were said to have taken refuge after being chased from the stages.
“We can not take any chances because these people (Mungiki) are dangerous…even the matatu crews are posing a danger to us because they are armed. That is why we have intensified patrols in the area,” Kiambu District Officer Isaack Masinde said.
Severally, police were forced to lobby tear gas canisters to flush out the suspects from their hideouts.
“We will not relent on this war until calm is restored here (Kiambu),” Masinde said.
And even as the war continued, it emerged that majority of people calling themselves matatu crews are not genuine.
A senior detective in the newly constituted team of officers charged with the responsibility of fighting Mungiki sect members said criminals were taking advantage of the situation to terrorize the public disguising themselves as matatu crews.
He said majority of those arrested since Monday morning were known criminals commonly found at matatu termini.
The officer’s revelation were a clear confirmation of what seen on the ground where rowdy youths armed with machetes demonstrated in Banana and Karuri area under the guise of being matatu touts and drivers.
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