A police officer was shot and injured before being robbed of his gun in an attack in Samburu County.
The incident happened on Saturday November 9 evening as police confronted a gang that was loading to transport stolen cows in a lorry from Moyale to Nairobi, police said.
A team of police officers had intercepted the Mercedes Benz Actros truck and were escorting it to a local police station when they came under attack.
Police said the officers were attacked in the Mlima Tatu area with the gunmen engaging the two officers in a fierce shootout.
During the incident, the bandits fired several rounds, injuring one officer in the left thigh.
They later grabbed his G3 rifle loaded with about 60 bullets and vanished with it.
This happened as the tried to load the animals onto the waiting lorry.
The bandits made away with 21 of the 40 animals, while others strayed into a nearby thicket.
The injured officer was rushed to Archer’s Post Hospital for initial treatment in fair condition.
The damaged trailer was escorted to the Sere Olipi police station for further police action.
In Samburu North, two herders were shot and seriously wounded in an ambush by gunmen.
The two were walking on foot from Manyatta to Marti when they were ambushed and shot at by a group of gunmen.
The victims were rushed to the Marti dispensary and later referred to the Samburu County Referral Hospital in Maralal for specialized treatment.
The incidents in Samburu and neighbouring Isiolo County at the weekend prompted Deputy Inspector General of Administration Police Gilbert Masengeli to fly there to coordinate an operation to stem them.
At least five people including two bandits were at the weekend killed in separate confrontations.
In the first incident, gunmen believed to be cattle rustlers shot and killed three herders in a village in Isiolo County.
Five other herders were injured in the two separate incidents, police said.
The first incident happened Sunday morning in Bojidare area where an unknown number of bandits armed with assault rifles shot and killed two herders before stealing their 300 goats and cows.
Police said the two were shot and killed as they confronted the gang.
A team of police officers which responded there managed to recover all the cows.
Masengeli said three other villagers who were shot in the incident were rushed to the hospital where they were admitted.
He added a team had been dispatched to the area to pursue the missing goats.
“We are on the ground pursuing the attackers,” he said.
Masengeli flew to the area to assess the situation on the ground ahead of more planned operations.
In Hola Bule area, another gang shot and killed a herder and managed to steal his 19 heads of cattle.
Two other people including a police reservist were injured in the raid and were taken to hospital for treatment and discharged.
Police said they recovered all the stolen animals.
Masengeli said they had intensified operations in the area pursuing the bandits wrecking havoc.
Elsewhere in Waso area, Samburu County, two suspected bandits were shot and killed across River Waso area under Samburu East and a total of 211 heads of cattle were recovered from them in a police operation.
Police said they were pursuing more bandits who escaped the Sunday morning raid.
Masengeli is leading an operation in the area.
Cases of cattle rustling have been on slow decrease due to operations mounted by security agencies. Deputy President Kithure Kindiki who is the immediate former interior Cabinet Secretary has been leading the operations in the area vowing to end the menace.
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