- Cases of drug trafficking, possession and consumption in Mombasa and other towns have been on the rise despite operations to tame them.
- Dozens of traffickers have since been arrested and charged in the operations.
Image: DCI/FILE
Former Kisii County Criminal Investigations Officer (CCIO) Adan Guyo was Thursday February 29 named the new Coast Regional Criminal Investigations Officer (RCIO).
He takes over from Ali Bule Samata who was recalled to Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) headquarters.
Before his deployment to the Coast, Guyo was based at the DCI headquarters investigation branch.
Both Guyo and Samata are seasoned officers having served at various places, their colleagues said.
Guyo took over the office Thursday at a brief ceremony.
Director DCI Mohamed Amin said the changes were normal to boost general operations.
Insiders said the changes were prompted by the calls to enhance operations against drug trafficking and consumption in the region.
A section of leaders have been pushing for the campaign against the vice and partially blamed the law enforcement agencies for the gaps seen in the same.
Cases of drug trafficking, possession and consumption in Mombasa and other towns have been on the rise despite operations to tame them.
Dozens of traffickers have since been arrested and charged in the operations.
Police say traffickers now use roads as opposed to airports to carry out their business.
The most commonly trafficked narcotics from Tanzania and through Uganda is heroin.
Cocaine is also trafficked from the two countries. Bhang is also heavily used in the area.
This comes in the backdrop of a recent National Drug Survey by the National Authority for the Campaign Against Alcohol and Drug Abuse (NACADA) indicating widespread abuse of prescription medication.
DCI conducted operations where traditional dealers in hard drugs were arrested while in possession of assorted prescription pills pointing to a shortage of heroin.
The report indicates that subscriptions for harm reduction clinics where methadone maintenance treatment is used to treat opioid dependence have increased especially in the coastal city of Mombasa.
The opioid-dependent takes a daily dose of methadone as a liquid or pill which reduces withdrawal symptoms and cravings for opioids.
In the report, the medications commonly abused were identified as codeine, dextromethorphan, noscapine, morphine, caffeine, ketamine and papaverine.
The government is now looking at measures to curb the proliferation and availability of the medications in the market.
Nacada CEO Dr Anthony Omerikwa confirmed that the consumption of bhang had risen by 90 per cent in the region. He explained that about one million Kenyans smoke bhang.
Kenya made the second biggest seizure in July 2016 and arrested two suspects who were linked to the 100 kilograms of cocaine valued at Sh598 million disguised as sugar.