Police are investigating claims that about two tons of gold destined for the Dominican Republic disappeared from the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA).
Preliminary investigations by the Kenyan and DRC detectives have revealed that airport clearing agents, top security, aviation, and customs officers could have been involved in the theft.
The illegal gold trade, according to investigations, is fueling the DRC two-decade conflict.
The probe, which began early this month, has linked associates of a senior politician and a security officer based at JKIA.
The probe has also revealed that the gold was taken out of the country without proper clearance channels or protocols.
“The gold haul is said to have been executed with the help of very senior security apparatus and some diplomatic channels as well as experienced aviation and cargo agents,” an investigation report reads.
“They were awaiting clearance to be able to travel to Dominican Republic with the help of their local partners,” the report adds.
A senior politician in the country, who had earlier been mentioned in a similar scandal is one of the people the detectives are focusing as a person of interest.
The buyers are said to be foreigners, officials said.
They had apparently differed with the sellers, prompting them to seek help from senior politicians to shift the consignment to the customs office.
Detectives from both countries are moving in on the identified parties involved and are now seeking to identify the destination and recover the gold.
The parties held several meetings at top hotels in the suburbs of Karen.
Kenya has become notorious in the gold trade business, ever since the days of Kamlesh Pattni and the Goldenberg Scandal.
A recent Al Jazeera four-part series investigating Africa’s largest gold smugglers and money launderers, stated Kamlesh Pattni has been running a similar scheme in Zimbabwe.He has however denied the claims.
One of the owners of the gold who is apparently a military general in Kinshasa has already initiated the process of halting the transaction through the courts in a bid to recover the gold.
The DCI had earlier sounded alarm over rising cases where foreigners are conned of money by Kenyans operating with fake gold bars.
The DCI has also urged Embassies and High Commissions to advise their nationals coming in for business, adding that they should first contact the Department of Mines and Geology for procedure that pertains to buying and selling of gold and other precious metals.
