Man shot and killed by fleeing bandits in Laikipia

FILE IMAGE OF A POLICE LINE

A 36-year-old man was shot and killed by fleeing bandits in a village in Rumuruti, Laikipia County.

Police said the incident happened on May 6 dawn on the Rumuruti-Maralal road.

Bernard Kipchirchir was on the road and on the phone when a gang that was driving away stolen livestock approached.

Witnesses said one of the gunmen shot and killed the man unprovoked.

They thought he was making a call and alerting authorities of the incident. The gunmen had stolen 15 cows from a homestead in the area and were escaping when the incident happened.

Police said they managed to drive away the animals and efforts to trace them continued on Wednesday.

The body of the deceased was moved to the mortuary pending an autopsy and other procedures. The area is among those under a special operation aimed at addressing cattle rustling menace.

The operation has led to the reduction of the incidents at large, officials said.

More security personnel have been sent to the area to back up the ongoing operation which has seen a recovery of dozens of weapons and ammunition.

Meanwhile, six workers were injured when a fire broke out at a restaurant in Siala, Siaya County.

A worker was fixing a burner to a new gas cylinder in the kitchen at a café at Rera Shopping Centre when the fire broke out.

The gas cylinder exploded causing the fire, police said adding six workers who were in the kitchen were injured.

They were all admitted at local hospitals with burns amid investigations.

And a police officer was rushed to the hospital after a snake bite in Garissa Town.

The constable of police was on sentry duties on May 5 when he was bitten by the snake in the leg. The officer attached to the QRU Kamuthe Special operations was later rushed to hospital and admitted there for medical attention.

Such incidents are common in the area amid campaigns to address them.