Suspected Drug Lord Ali Punjani Escapes Police Trap In Mombasa Drug Swoop, MCA Arrested

Suspected Mombasa drug lord Ali Punjani today escaped police trap in his residence in drug swoop that has been declared by Interior CS Fred Matiang’i.

Police in plains clothes, GSU officers and K-9 Unit police officers with sniffer dogs raided the home in Nyali trying to net Punjani, who is suspected to be a close ally of convicted drug lords, the Akasha brothers.

He however managed to escape before police arrived.

“We believe this house has been used to sell drugs. We will not get out of here until this house has been fully searched. We have names of certain people and they will be found before end of the day,” Mombasa Police Commander Johnstone Ipara said.

Read: Lamu OCS, Junior Officers Apprehended After Releasing Drug Trafficker

Hours later, Bofu Ward MCA Ahmed Salama was arrested in Likoni in a similar operation.

Police seized 147 rolls of bhang, 42 sachets heroin and 742 tables of rohypnol commonly known as bugizi in the operation. Ipara said that 18 people have been arrested in connection with drugs so far.

A police officer in charge of Lamu Police Station was arrested on Monday morning alongside three junior officers for releasing a drug consignment under unclear circumstances.

This comes a day after Interior CS Fred Matiang’i vowed to take “painful” action against drug trafficking in the region.

Read: CS Matiang’i Introduces First-Ever Female SWAT Squad In Kenya

Speaking in Mombasa, Matiang’i linked the recent killings in Kisauni to drug use among the residents.

“We are commencing an unprecedented effort to deal with this issue of drug peddling. It is going to be a painful exercise, but we are prepared to start the journey,” Matiang’i said.

According to Inspector General of Police Hillary Mutyambai, a drug trafficker was also released.

The suspect has been identified as Mr Swabri who was nabbed on Sunday by Border Patrol unit officers.

Read: CS Matiang’i Vows To Apply ‘Unprecedented Pressure’ To Crush Wakali Kwanza Group

According to the Nation, the marijuana consignment was released after the suspect paid a Sh50,000 bribe to the officers.

The consignment had been seized in transit from Lamu Island to Siyu in Lamu East by police officers acting on a tip-off from members of the public.

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