A new security report handed over to President William Ruto on Tuesday has revealed that Nairobi County hosts more than 130 criminal gangs.
This makes Nairobi the country’s largest hub of organised and amorphous criminal groups.
The Jukwaa la Usalama Report warns that although the threat of gang activity is widespread across Kenya, the crisis is most acute in the capital, where groups are increasingly involved in political violence, kidnappings, extortion and even murder.
“Nairobi County, for example, has over 130 gangs alone. The activities of the gangs range from political violence, kidnapping, to murder. Some of the gangs are organised, while a majority are amorphous, only regrouping for assignments during elections,” the report notes.
Beyond Nairobi, the report identifies several counties grappling with similar security challenges.
These include Kakamega, Busia, Bungoma, Vihiga, Kisii, Homa Bay, Kisumu, Tana River, Trans Nzoia, Mombasa, Murang’a and Machakos, where the proliferation of gangs has increasingly disrupted social and economic stability.
According to the report, most of these groups are relatively new, emerging in response to political competition, urban unemployment and weak community structures.
Older groups such as Mungiki and the Mombasa Republican Council (MRC) now exist only in residual form, the report says, though they remain under close surveillance due to their past influence and potential for revival.
“The majority of the gangs are concentrated in urban and peri-urban areas, but some have penetrated rural communities in counties such as Kakamega, Busia, Bungoma, and Trans Nzoia,” the report adds.
Their activities typically include violent disruptions of rallies, coercion of local populations and enforcement of political loyalty.
The report identifies notorious gangs such as Jeshi Jinga, 42 Brothers, M23, Kapenguria Six and Usiku Sacco, among dozens of others spread across the western, coastal and Rift Valley regions.
In Nakuru, the infamous Confirm and Watizeti gangs remain active in areas such as Nakuru East, Kivumbini, Bondeni and Rhonda estates.
Despite frequent arrests and prosecutions, the report warns that many members exhibit recidivist behaviour, often returning to crime shortly after release. Authorities, however, note that intensified intelligence-led operations have weakened some of these groups.
At the Coast, criminal outfits such as Panga Boys, once active in Mombasa and Kwale, have been significantly suppressed through arrests, community sensitisation, rehabilitation and vocational training programmes.
Land invasion gangs are also on the rise, the report warns, depriving individuals, private organisations and even government institutions of land rights.
Groups such as Gaza and remnants of Mungiki are reportedly being used in Machakos County to invade land and take control of mining sites.
In Kilifi and Mombasa, outfits like Team Mashamba and Mawoza are allegedly deployed by land grabbers to execute forced occupations.
The report urges the government to scale up multi-agency interventions to restore peace and safeguard vulnerable communities, particularly in areas where criminal networks have taken root.
