- No recovery had been made by Monday amid fears of retaliation.
- A team of police officers was informed of the attack and pursued the gang.
Image: The Star
One herder was shot dead and another wounded in an attack by cattle rustlers who stole more than 500 animals in Marsabit county.
The area is facing increased cases of gun attacks by gunmen who escape with animals leaving a trail of destruction and deaths.
Police said a gang raided Parchuma village in Laisamis and shot dead 30- year-old Leisim Khoyan.
The attackers then drove off with 400 herds of cattle towards Sikinite area. No recovery had been made by Monday amid fears of retaliation.
This was after the villagers called a meeting to retaliate the killing and robbing of their animals.
Police said they are investigating and pursuing the attackers.
The officers also said the gunmen raided Kituruni and Ilpus villages in Laisamis at the weekend, shot and seriously injured a herder before grabbing 180 cows.
A team of police officers was informed of the attack and pursued the gang. Police said they managed to recover 110 of the stolen cows.
The government is making efforts to address the menace. Eastern police boss Rono Bunei said they had deployed more officers in the area to tame any planned and counter attacks.
Dozens of people have been killed and others displaced. The government had launched an operation in the area in May in tandem with a disarmament exercise targeting illegal guns and ammunition.
This was after National Security Council decided to launch 'Operation Rejesha Amani Marsabit' following incessant inter-ethnic attacks that have defied peace initiatives and the lapse of the 30-day window sought by county leaders to secure reconciliation.
Special forces from different police units were among troops deployed to conduct a month-long operation for illegal guns and ammunition.
The animosity between the Borana and Gabra communities has progressively boiled over amid concerns over political leaders who have frustrated previous attempts to pacify the area.
Rival groups have also been armed and transformed into competitive political militias meting out violence on innocent civilians in what has become one the costly security challenge in the country.