Why efforts to recover stolen livestock in Baringo fail

If you lose your livestock to rustlers in Baringo County, it's almost certain that you will never get them back. And there are myriad reasons.

On September 23, Benjamin Kangogo lost more than 24 of his cows, his economic mainstay. 

The 2pm ambush also saw hundreds of livestock belonging to other villagers driven away towards the dreaded Ngelecha valley, on the boundary of Baringo South and Tiaty East. 

Kangogo, a former police reservist from Lamaiywe in Baringo South, is now a dejected man, unable to take care of his young family’s basic needs. Korkoron village was also raided.

Locals suspect the criminals were illegal herders flushed out of Laikipia North by the government after invading private ranches and conservancies and igniting a conflict in which dozens were killed and thousands displaced from their homes.

After the attack, a video of a distraught elderly woman wailing after her cows were stolen circulated on social media.

“As we speak, the calves are bellowing at the homesteads, waiting to suckle, but the worst part is, most villagers who depend on livestock have been rendered poor. Who should we run to?” the sobbing woman said.

“It seems no one is willing to help us, including the security officers deployed to restore normalcy. Had they responded on time, the animals could have been returned.”

For decades, this has been the norm. Many residents have been impoverished, displaced from their homes or killed. Residents say the situation was aggravated when the government disarmed police reservists, their only line of defence, two years ago. 

Hideouts and escape routes

Mr Kangogo, who was a police reservist for three years, said recovering animals is complicated by the rough terrain and a poor mobile phone network.

“You can imagine pursuing dozens of armed criminals with sophisticated firearms, with some hiding in the bushes to ambush their pursuers,” he said.

“Once they cross the border, it is hard to recover the animals. Any mission beyond that is gambling with your life as chances of coming back alive are minimal.”

He said cattle thieves are well coordinated. 

“They can even camp in the area for weeks to identify hideouts for spying and escape routes,” he said. “They will not be easily traced and they split into several groups, with each having its role—some to steal, others to take over in driving away the animals and others to defend against their pursuers.”

If there is a police camp, they surround it to ensure officers don’t respond to distress calls. 

He also said locals are reluctant to share information for fear of being attacked as the bandits have informers.

“You can imagine hundreds or thousands of stolen livestock with several bandits passing through several villages, but no one is willing to divulge any information...” he said.

Another reservist, Jackson Chemjor, who has served for seven years in Chemoe, Baringo North, said bandits usually have more than enough ammunition and can fight the entire day. 

Ambush unsuspecting officers

“They carry sugar, water, and soaked maize on their backs to rekindle their energy, normally bagged in goatskin,” he said. 

“...they will never get tired as they rejuvenate their energy.”

The bandits hide in the rugged terrain, donning jungle green attire to camouflage and ambush unsuspecting officers, most of whom are not familiar with the terrain and sweltering heat.

The futile bids to recover stolen livestock are best summarised by Mr Julius Akeno, a resident of Tiaty who authored Patrons of Wild Suguta Valley. Cattle raids, Mr Akeno writes, start long before the actual day.

“Their (the advance team) mission was the most difficult of all the others. They are used to locate homesteads and assess the level of defence. They could also map out the region, including escape routes and dead grounds,” Mr Akeno writes of the mission reserved only for experienced rustlers.

Today’s raids, however, are commercial enterprises, with several parties involved, ranging from administrators to politicians and security personnel. Rustling has more recently become a form of organised crime.

An Anti-Stock Theft Unit officer, who sought anonymity for fear of victimisation, said cartels benefit and some chiefs abet the crime by shielding criminals to get a token from the proceeds.

“Livestock cannot pass through villages without the knowledge of chiefs or their assistants. Try asking them for such information and you will be surprised. They will never divulge, never,” he said.

Recovery of stolen livestock

“The government should vet such persons regularly if we want to tame this menace, otherwise, we will be revolving around the same problems for ages.”

He also said that when bandits cross the border, they mix stolen livestock with theirs and divide them to go in different directions to confuse their pursuers.

The livestock are branded by cutting their ears for easy identification. However, thieves rebrand them. 

The stolen animals, he said, are split into small groups and driven to different markets for sale. 

“Cows stolen in Chemoe, Baringo North, for instance, may be driven towards Kolowa in Tiaty then Lomut in West Pokot or Kitale,” he said.

Some security officers at roadblocks, he claimed, hamper the recovery of stolen livestock by taking bribes to allow ‘traders’ to transport the animals to various destinations.

“These raiders have sophisticated firearms compared with security officers and when pursuing stolen livestock, we are normally very careful because they may ambush us as they have mastered all the escape routes, the terrain and are used to the harsh climatic conditions,” he said.

“How do you expect an officer who grew up in the highland or urban areas to compete with such people?”

But Rift Valley Regional Commissioner George Natembeya said despite these challenges, efforts have been stepped up to recover stolen livestock and end the age-old practice.

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