A former Member of Parliament has been arrested in relation to banditry attacks in Laikipia that have been going on for at least three weeks.
The unrest that has rocked Laikipia west constituency has so far claimed 12 lives and led to the displacement of hundreds of people.
Detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) raided the home of former Laikipia North MP Mathew Lempurkel on Wednesday and took him away.
In 2018, the former lawmaker was also arrested over claims of incitement. It was alleged that Lempurkel incited members of the communities in the county to turn against each other during a meeting he had convened at the Mowarak Trading Centre.
The police claimed that Lempurkel had also he had advised pastoralist to graze on private ranches during the dry season.
“We have enough evidence that he incited the communities to turn against each other. In fact, he particularly pointed out that the Samburu and Pokots living in the area must evict all the Kikuyus and Kelenjins for they had taken over their land,” the police commander, Simon Kipkeu, stated.
Earlier on Laikipia Governor Ndiritu Muriithi said that he survived an attack by bandits while visiting the troubled area to assess the situation.
Speaking to Spice FM, he said that he had to drive away in high speed when they saw the bandits moving closer to his vehicle, positioning their guns ready to shoot.
He accused the police of laxity saying that they were not pursuing the attackers but instead they wait until the bandits attacked locals before taking an step.
“From the laxity that have been witnessed from security officers, it becomes hard to explain how we have not captured or killed a single bandit yet they continue to kill our people. For this reason, I can’t rule out a possible involvement by a senior government official as some politicians suspect,” said the Laikipia governor.
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