Five suspects linked to car breakages and theft of millions arrested

The five are said to have stolen from businessman based in Nairobi's South C area.

In Summary
  • The five suspects were escorted to DCI Lang'ata offices where they have been booked for the long weekend.

  • Police said efforts are in place to recover a second motor vehicle and trace and arrest a sixth accomplice who fled to Mombasa.

Arrest
Arrest
Image: FILE

Detectives on Thursday arrested five suspects believed to have been involved in a series of robberies in Nairobi.

DCI described the suspects as dreaded and ones known for stealing from locked vehicles within the city. 

The five suspects are alleged to have stolen Sh900,000 and another USD 15,000 from a businessman based in Nairobi's South C area two weeks ago.

"The distressed victim who reported at Akila Police Station in Lang'ata indicated that he had just parked his BMW X1 along Muhoho Road opposite Rubis Petrol Station and entered an auto parts shop when the suspects struck," detectives said. 

Police said the victim had gone back to his car less than five minutes later, only to find a smashed rear window and a missing bag that contained the money.

Also missing were his KCB, DTB and Gulf African Bank ATM cards, his national ID card, smart driving license and assorted job-related documents. 

Police said that later that evening, the victim received a message alert indicating that Sh40,000 had been withdrawn from his KCB account and another 40,000 from the DTB account at an ATM in Embakasi.

"The Nairobi region Crime Research team then initiated a forensic-led trail on the suspects," police said. 

Backed up by the Operations Unit, the detectives arrested the first suspect who was captured by a nearby CCTV breaking into the motor vehicle.

Police said the footage also captured the second and third suspects keeping watch as the first suspects smashed the car window with a catapult. 

All this time, a fifth suspect, a female, was stalking the victim, as the fifth suspect waited in a getaway Mazda Demio fitted with registration plates KCE 822F belonging to a Subaru car. 

"One after another, the suspects were rounded up last night before the spy vehicle was traced to Tsavo Gardens,"  police said.

In the vehicle, police recovered the victim's KCB ATM card and car-breaking tools including a catapult.

The five suspects were escorted to DCI Lang'ata offices where they have been booked for the long weekend.

Police said efforts are in place to recover a second motor vehicle and trace and arrest a sixth accomplice who fled to Mombasa.

"Detectives believe that the syndicate is linked to another four suspects who were arrested on February 16 last year after a series of car breakings using the same tools of trade still in South C, Nairobi." 

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