Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) detectives in Nakuru County are hunting down former Mungiki leader Maina Njenga for questioning over the alleged recovery of two firearms and rolls of bhang said to have been seized at his home in Wanyororo, Nakuru County.
The DCI has deployed a special team of detectives to find the politician whom they say has gone into hiding following the incident.
“The former Mungiki leader is wanted for questioning over recovery of bhang and firearms at a home linked to him. Any information on the whereabouts of the ex-Mungiki leader who has since gone into hiding maybe volunteered to the DCI," read a statement by the DCI in part.
According to the sleuths, during the raid conducted at the home last week, eight suspects aged between 37 and 54 were arrested at the residence.
Police say they also found three rounds of 9mm blank ammunition hidden in one of the rooms at the residence.
"One of the firearms recovered was a homemade pistol while the other one was a Tokarev whose serial number had been defaced," further read the DCI statement posted on their social media accounts.
Nation.Africa has established that detectives are looking for Mr Njenga to interrogate him about his links with the eight people, suspected to be members of the outlawed Mungiki sect.
A senior detective in Nakuru who sought anonymity told Nation.Africa that the suspects were arrested while in a meeting at the home linked to Mr Njenga.
"The men were rounded up in a house in Wanyororo, in Bahati sub-county while gathered in a meeting and it is suspected they were recruiting members into the sect which is regrouping. We are investigating them to establish if they are linked to the outlawed sect ," revealed the detective.
"Mr Njenga had been summoned to appear before the Rift Valley regional headquarters in Nakuru City on Monday, but he failed to appear and instead went into hiding," further disclosed the detective.
The eight suspects were arraigned before a Nakuru court last Thursday, but police sought more time to conclude their investigations.
The police, in their application before court said they recovered paraphernalia associated with the Mungiki sect, which is an outlawed criminal group in Kenya.
Corporal Eliud Misoi, a detective attached to Nakuru North Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) office said the eight individuals are suspected to be members of an organized criminal gang operating in Nakuru, which is behind a spate of crimes in the region.
According to the officer, the group was arrested in Wanyororo near Dundori, on May 12 gathered in a house with the suspected intention of recruiting more members into the gang.
Corporal Misoi revealed that during the arrest the police recovered a pistol, a homemade gun, 90 rolls of bhang, one kilogram of traditional tobacco, notebooks containing suspected indoctrinating notes, registration documents of several organizations and two motor vehicles.
The court heard that the police needed to take the firearms to the ballistic examination at the DCI headquarters in Nairobi for forensic analysis, and take the mobile phone to Cyber Crime Unit for forensic analysis.
Police further said they want to forward the documents to the registrar of societies for authentication as well as verify the motor vehicle ownership with the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA).
According to the police, the youth were drawn from various places including Njoro, Dundori and Gilgil in Nakuru County. Some were from Limuru, Murang’a, Kikuyu and Nyahururu.
Nakuru Chief Magistrate directed that the suspects be detained at Bahati police station for four days to enable police to conclude investigations.
