Four armed robbery suspects killed in Eldoret shootout

Four suspected armed robbers were fatally shot on Sunday night following a gun clash with detectives along the Eldoret–Kiplombe–Soy Road.

Police said the incident happened after the suspects allegedly opened fire on officers during an operation.

According to police, detectives from the Operation Action Team (OAT) at the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) Headquarters had mounted an ambush after receiving reports from the public that a gang of four armed men, allegedly dressed in police uniforms, had been terrorising motorists and residents along the route.

Police said the suspects began shooting indiscriminately after spotting the officers, prompting detectives to return fire. 

Four suspects were fatally wounded, while an unknown number of their accomplices reportedly escaped towards Eldoret Town on three motorcycles.

A search at the scene led to the recovery of a Falcon pistol loaded with four rounds of 9×19mm ammunition, a homemade pistol, a hammer mallet, crude breaking tools, balaclava masks, gloves and strings. 

One spent cartridge was also recovered, police said. 

Preliminary police investigations have linked the suspects to a series of violent robberies across Uasin Gishu county, including incidents targeting Turbo Girls High School, Kaptagat Girls High School, Kapenguria Petrol Station and Starbex Petrol Station.

 Crime Scene Investigation officers processed the scene before the bodies were moved to the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH) mortuary, where they are awaiting post-mortem examinations as investigations continue.

This is the latest such ambush as police push back to contain crime in several parts of the country. Police say armed robberies have been on the rise amid efforts to arrest the situation. A number of cases have since been solved. 

Meanwhile, police have launched investigations after the body of an unidentified man was found with fatal injuries outside an apartment complex in Mlolongo, Machakos County.

According to police, the body was discovered on Saturday morning outside an apartment in the Kathangaita area.

Police visited the scene and established that the deceased, an unknown middle-aged African man, was lying near the main entrance to the apartment block.

Police observed visible injuries to the head and back, believed to have been inflicted using both blunt and sharp objects, prompting investigators to treat the case as a suspected murder.

Investigators said the apartments are mainly occupied by students, but none of the tenants was present when officers arrived.

The caretaker had also not been traced by the time police visited the scene, leaving investigators without eyewitness accounts of what transpired.

The scene was processed by DCI officers before the body was moved to the Machakos County Funeral Home, where it will undergo a post-mortem examination to help establish the cause of death and aid investigations.

Police are appealing for information that may assist in identifying the deceased and tracing those responsible for the killing.

And police in Isiolo county are investigating the fatal shooting of a 26-year-old herder during a suspected stock theft incident in Gotu.

According to a police report, the victim, identified as Jaro Katelo Elema, was grazing livestock on Friday when he was reportedly shot dead.

Police officers visited the scene and established that the deceased had sustained multiple gunshot wounds, including injuries to the right side of the chest, right arm and the stomach.

The body was transported to Isiolo by private means before police documented the incident.

Authorities have not disclosed who was responsible for the shooting, and investigations are ongoing to establish the circumstances surrounding the incident, which is linked to a reported livestock theft.