This archive report was first published on 2 July 2021.
Published on July 2, 2021, a spate of daylight abductions has sent shock waves in the Mt Kenya region, with four people abducted in Nyeri and Nyandarua counties in less than a week.
Businessman Gerald Guandaru was the first to be abducted on Tuesday, reportedly captured and forced into a station wagon vehicle in Nyeri Town.
Two other men, Samuel Ngacha and Bernard Wanjohi, were abducted at Kanyagia area on the Nyeri–Nyahururu highway on Wednesday, in a manner similar to Mr Guandaru's kidnapping.
According to police reports, the two men were abducted by unknown men on Wednesday afternoon, with eyewitnesses describing the scene as a hijacking.
Police boss Ahmed Ali told the Nation, 'A report of a hijacking was made yesterday near Kieni Dairy. Two men were taken and investigations have started.'
As investigations continue, police are yet to establish the motive behind the abductions, with some speculating links to illegal trade in game trophies.
Mr Guandaru had been arrested and charged with illegal possession of elephant horns and a firearm in 2017, alongside a man identified as Gicobi Mwai.
They were acquitted in 2020, with the trial magistrate citing contradictory and unsatisfactory evidence from the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS).
