Six suspected gangsters were killed in a gun battle with police on Thursday night.
The 8.30pm incident started with a car chase at Githurai 45 and ended near the Kahawa roundabout on the Northern Bypass.
The gangsters were escaping in a Toyota NZE and the police were trailing in a Subaru Outback, as the occupants of each vehicle fired at the other.
After a 15-minute chase, the gangsters’ car veered off the road and landed in a ditch, giving an advantage to the officers from the crack Special Crimes Prevention Unit.
A Taurus pistol loaded with five bullets and an AK-47 assault rifle loaded with 16 bullets were found on the gangsters, police said. Also found in the vehicle were police uniforms and a panga.
One of them was identified as Loponyo, whom officers described as the gang leader and a sharpshooter who had escaped many police dragnets before.
According to police, the other is Waweru, who had joined the gang after he was released two weeks ago from Kamiti Maximum Prison, where he was being held over robbery with violence charges.
UNDERCOVER OPERATIONS
The police unit was initially informed about the gang two months ago and had since started undercover operations to profile its members.
Most of the victims of the gang were M-Pesa operators and motorists who were waylaid at their gates when they drove into their homes at night.
It mostly operated in Githurai 45, Githurai Kimbo, Ruiru, Kiambu and Kahawa Sukari.
It was also linked to the carjacking of a woman in Ongata Rongai three days ago.
An official police report on the incident said: “Having monitored the vehicle for a while, the officers challenged the occupants to surrender but they defied and sped off. A shoot-out ensued as they gave chase.”
Separately, two armed gangsters seized Mr Jonathan Tuwei just after he drove into his home in Uthiru at about 7.30 pm.
“After driving to his residence and (parking) the vehicle, two men emerged from the dark and forced him back into the car, and drove off,” according to a police report.
The gangsters drove him to Westlands, where they withdrew Sh20,000 using his ATM card.
WOMAN RAPED
He also lost Sh36,000 he was carrying and a mobile phone.
The gangsters then escaped with his vehicle, which was later recovered in the Congo area.
Meanwhile, in Nakuru, two men were killed and their bodies dumped in the Kiamunyi area.
The bodies were discovered at 10pm by a boda boda operator, who reported the matter to police.
And in Runyenjes, Embu County, a woman was raped and stabbed to death while her six-year-old son watched.
The boy recounted to police the incident that happened at 10.30pm Wednesday.
“It was established that the deceased had been having land disputes with members of her immediate family,” according to a police report.
