This archive report was first published on 8 September 2019.
On September 5, 2019, thieves stole Sh72 million from ATMs in Nairobi, but their plan was foiled when detectives from the Special Crimes Prevention Unit (SCPU) arrested 11 people in connection with the robbery and recovered Sh7 million.
The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) is set to charge five more suspects in court on Monday morning, and indications are that the DCI will ask for more time to solve the puzzle and recover the balance of Sh65 million that is still missing.
According to the head of DCI George Kinoti, detectives investigating the matter have established that the suspects confirmed that the Subaru Forester was bought on the same day of the theft, and the two suspects were planning to travel to Uganda with the cash.
However, what led detectives to Kisii, more than 300 kilometres away from where the Sh72 million was stolen is the mobile phone communication between Constable Machogu and another police officer also linked to the heist but who was arrested on Friday evening in Kikuyu, Kiambu.
On reaching the scene, the officers from Kikuyu Police Station discovered empty bags from Standard Chartered Bank, Stanbic Bank, KCB and Barclays Bank, and they also recovered a mobile phone, a SIM card with serial number 89254021104175661927 and a jacket belonging to G4S.
The officers immediately notified the SPCU who dispatched a team to the scene, and the number plate of the Toyota Voxy registration number KCE 920E that was captured by CCTV cameras at Nairobi West on the day of the heist had been circulated and the Flying Squad were searching for it.
Interestingly, while reporting the robbery a whole two hours after it had taken place despite the fact that Nairobi West Patrol Base is a stone’s throw away from the scene of crime, the G4S officers did not tell the police the colour of the vehicle that ferried the stolen cash.
On Friday evening, the white vehicle was impounded at Owino’s Garage on the Southern Bypass in Kikuyu town, and its owner, a tall dark man whom we have been told is a regular at the garage wanted it painted black.
He even brought his own paint, and apart from a new paint job, the owner of the vehicle wanted its entertainment system ripped off and a new one installed, which was given to True Quality Sound Systems, which is also on the Southern Bypass.
On Friday, Chief Magistrate Martha Mutuku allowed the DCI to hold Musa Rajab, Abraham Mwangi Njoroge, Ascar Kemunto, Wilfred Nyambane, Nathan Njiru and Danmark Magembe for a week to allow for the conclusion of investigations.
