• Boda bodas were trailing them after getting a tip-off from a resident who saw them untying the goats.
• Trio is said to have stolen 10 goats and sheep from Gathiuru sub-location in Nyeri and fled towards Nanyuki town.
Three suspected livestock thieves escaped death after a tyre burst of their getaway vehicle in Nanyuki town.
The trio is said to have stolen 10 goats and sheep from Gathiuru sub-location in Kieni East subcounty in Nyeri and fled towards Nanyuki town.
Assistant chief Kariuki Mbugua said the suspects, two men and a woman, had been terrorising residents in the area and the surrounding villages for several weeks. They managed to flee, he said.
“Recently they stole livestock in Gatuanyaga and in some parts of Laikipia using a Probox vehicle whose front and rear number plates were different," Mbugua said.
The vehicle, which broke down at Muthaiga Estate in the outskirts of Nanyuki town, had been trailed by boda boda riders after they got a tip-off by a resident who spotted the suspects untying the goats and loading them in the car.
The administrator noted that several community meetings had been held to address the issue of the theft.
The livestock were all recovered and handed back to the owners while the vehicle was towed to Nanyuki police station.
Michael Mwai, a resident of Kamangura village, lauded the members of the public who pursued the thieves saying they had suffered for a long time owing to livestock theft.
It was not immediately established where the thieves used to take the stolen livestock.
Edited by R.Wamochie