On 19 November 2018, police shot dead four suspected hardcore criminals in Baraka area of Mowlem, Dandora, after tracking a gang they said had been on the run for a long time.
A police source identified the ringleader only as Mutuku and said the group had terrorised residents across several parts of Nairobi and its outskirts, including Mukuru, Kitengela, Kayole, Buruburu, Kasarani, Ruiru and Thika. The source also said the suspects had repeatedly been captured on CCTV during robberies, especially at M-Pesa shops.
According to the same source, the men were killed by Ahmed Rashid, the police officer widely known as Hessy and described as a crime buster.
The case was tied to a wider trail of violent crime in the city. On 17 October 2018, Rashid arrested another wanted suspect, Brayo, who was said to be linked to a string of robberies and murders in Nairobi.
Among the killings mentioned was that of Corporal Martin Korir, who died during the hijacking of a Neo Kenya bus on Thika Road on 28 April. Police also said four gangsters believed to have taken part in that murder were killed on 12 May in Dandora Phase 2, and that Flying Squad officers recovered a gun belonging to the slain officer.
