4 suspected robbers shot dead in Eldoret Town

By Dun Wanga

Four suspected robbers were on Wednesday, January 8, shot dead in Eldoret Town, Uasin Gishu County.

Police say the four had travelled from Nakuru to Eldoret on Monday, and were planning to engage in robbery at an unspecified hardware in Eldoret.

The law enforcement officers said they tracked the suspects’ phone communication, and were, consequently, able to launch the ambush. Ahead of the alleged robbery, the four were putting up in a hotel in Eldoret Town, authorities said.

And, on Thursday, while on their way to the said-robbery venue, police strategically positioned a lorry on the Eldoret-Nairobi highway as the suspected robbers approached.

The law enforcement officers upon blocking the suspected robbers’ vehicle – a Toyota Axio –  at the Paul’s Bakery area in Eldoret Town, ordered the four to surrender. Three of the suspects came out of the car with their hands lifted. The driver, however, brandished a firearm and shot at the police officers.

It was then that the multi-agency security officers returned fire, killing the driver on the spot.

Authorities say in the course of the resultant melee, the other three also whipped out their firearms and shot at the police officers.

Police, however, managed to gun them down. No cop was injured in the incident.

Bodies of the suspected robbers were taken to Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital morgue, whereas their vehicle was towed to an Eldoret police post.

Confirming the incident, Uasin Gishu County Commander, Johnstone Ipara, said police had been tracking down the suspects for days before they were eliminated on Wednesday.

“We understand that some members of their gang are still in hiding. We want to assure them that we will nab and arraign them if they do not surrender to police,” said Ipara.

The Uasin Gishu police chief claimed that one of the guns that the suspects had, had been stolen from an Administration Police officer in the county last year.