Mother, daughter arrested with sniper rifles in Dagoretti

Police are puzzled by the seizure of a cache of arms and bullets from two women in Dagoretti, Nairobi.

The weapons, which included an M4 sniper rifle with an effective range of 500 meters, four pistols, a close-quarter Uzi automatic submachine gun capable of firing 600 rounds per minute and 3,700 bullets of different calibre were seized on Wednesday afternoon in an operation.

Police said they arrested two women who hold dual US citizenship and live in Racecourse, Dagoretti Corner, Nairobi.

“We are still yet to know the motive of the two and we are still investigating the issue,” he said.

The women were taken for interrogation by officers from Anti-Terror Police Unit.

Head of ATPU John Gachomo said they had taken the weapons to experts for ballistic examination.

He added the weapons seem to have been illegally imported into the country.

The two are expected in court on Thursday as police investigate their possible links to terrorism.

Police have been thwarting efforts by al-Shabaab militants to attack critical installations and learning institutions.

Last month, three men were arrested and a cache of weapons recovered from them in a police operation in Lagdera, Garissa County.

The three were transporting eight AK7 rifles, 2,104 bullets and 20 liters of petrol along Baraki- Maalmin Road in Lagdera area when they were intercepted after a four-hour chase.

In February, two people were arrested and AK47 rifle with 128 bullets and two hand grenades recovered in police operation in Isiolo.

The area is seen as a hotbed of radicalism and terrorism at large and has since prompted heavy police deployments there.