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Police kill Githurai gunman after man robbed outside gate
What you need to know:
- The incident comes just two days after detectives in Githurai and Kasarani issued a warning to suspected criminals operating there.
Police officers on Friday night shot and killed a gunman who had ambushed a man outside his apartment building in Githurai 44, Nairobi County.
A video clip shows the attacker walking towards the victim from the opposite direction, with his accomplice on a motorcycle riding on and waiting a short distance away.
A statement by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) says: “No sooner had the man stopped his vehicle and alighted to open the gate than the thug sprung from a dark lane opposite the gate and pointed a gun at him."
The attacker emptied all of his victim’s pockets and then hopped onto the motorcyle for an escape.
The escape plan failed as officers from Kasarani Police Station, who were in a parked car a few metres away, intervened when they noticed a commotion.
The officers pursued the two criminals from the opposite direction, forcing the rider to turn around and speed off.
"The armed thug suddenly disembarked and started running on foot towards a footpath while shooting towards the officers. Left with no other option, one of the crime busters opened fire and killed him on the spot,” the statement says.
A search was launched for the criminal who fled on the motorcycle.
Police officers took the gunman’s pistol, loaded with a bullet, for ballistics testing - to establish if it had been used to commit another crime.
The body of the attacker, who is yet to be identified, was taken to City Mortuary.
The incident comes just two days after detectives in Githurai and Kasarani issued a warning to suspected criminals operating there.
They released names of people who have been selling stolen phones, telling them their days were numbered.
