The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) in Kenya has apprehended a suspect accused of masquerading as a traffic police officer to rob bank customers. Muia Mutune, also known as Fredrick Mbuta, was arrested in Embakasi Village by detectives from the Operation Action Team (OAT) and the Crime Research and Intelligence Bureau (CRIB). The arrest was made after a series of investigations into robberies targeting unsuspecting victims who had withdrawn cash from banks.
According to the DCI, the suspect and his accomplices would wear traffic police uniforms to stop people leaving banks, using the authority associated with the uniform to carry out the robberies. The gang's modus operandi involved targeting victims who had recently withdrawn large sums of money from banks. Detectives used intelligence gathering and forensic analysis to identify Mutune and other suspects believed to be linked to the cases.
This is not Mutune's first run-in with the law; he was previously arrested in April over similar incidents but was released on bond in July. Detectives continued pursuing leads until intelligence led them to him in Embakasi Village. Mutune remains in custody as detectives prepare him for arraignment. The DCI said officers were still searching for the other suspects who remain at large.
The arrest follows several reported robberies in Nairobi in which suspects allegedly posed as police officers and stole millions of shillings from people carrying cash. On January 23, two men wearing traffic police uniforms stopped a Chinese national along Kyang'ombe on the old Mombasa Road, demanding her driving license before taking her vehicle and escaping with KSh2.14 million she had withdrawn from two banks.
Another incident occurred on March 17, where four men wearing blue police uniforms and reflector jackets intercepted a man near Gateway Mall after he withdrew KSh4.2 million from Equity Bank's Utawala branch. The suspects, reportedly armed, accused the man of trafficking narcotics, handcuffed him, and forced him into their vehicle. They then blindfolded him, abandoned him in Karen, and stole the cash.
In a third incident, a woman carrying KSh1.4 million entrusted to her by her employer was traveling by motorcycle towards Sayan Business Park when four men in a grey Mazda CX-5 intercepted her at the Cabanas Interchange. The suspects allegedly claimed to be police officers and forced the woman and the motorcycle rider into their vehicle, assaulting and blindfolding them before stealing the cash and their mobile phones.
Detectives investigating the three incidents arrested three suspects and recovered a suspected getaway vehicle, a Mazda CX-5, as well as reflector jackets and a military-style jungle hat believed to have been used in the robberies. The DCI's efforts to curb such crimes have been ongoing, with a focus on enhancing security measures and cracking down on those impersonating law enforcement officers.
Key points
- Muia Mutune, a suspect in a series of robberies, was arrested by Kenyan police for posing as a traffic officer.
- The suspect and his accomplices targeted victims who had withdrawn large sums of money from banks.
- The DCI is still searching for other suspects linked to the cases.
