7 Prison Warders Accused Of Aiding Kamiti Prison Break Arrested-Matiang’i

NAIROBI, Kenya, Nov 16 – Seven wardens at the Kamiti Maximum Prison are in police custody following the escape of three convicts who were serving jail terms for terrorism-related crimes.

Interior Cabinet Secretary Dr. Fred Matiangi said preliminary investigations suggested the escape from arguably the most secured maximum prison facility in the country was abetted by laxity and incompetence and vowed more arrests and prosecutions will follow after the Directorate of Criminal Investigations moved in to investigate the prison break.

The CS who led a senior security team to Kamiti prison last evening further announced a massive manhunt involving specialized teams had been launched across the country for Musharraf Abdalla Akhulunga a.k.a Zarkarawi, Mohammed Ali Abikar, and Joseph Juma Odhiambo a.k.a Yusuf even as the DCI placed Sh60 million bounty on their recapture.

“We will not only go the direction investigations will point us but we will act resolutely to ensure this kind of recklessness does not happen again because it exposes our people. Definitely, there is a certain level of irresponsibility we have to deal with in this particular case,” Matiangi said.

The CS who was flanked by principal secretaries Karaja Kibicho (Interior) and Zeynab Mohammed (Correctional Services), the Inspector General of Police Hilary Mutyambai, DCI boss George Kinoti and Commissioner General of Police Wycliffe Ogallo revealed that their extensive tour of Kamiti including Block A 6 where the trio had been held did not appear to support the official version of escape given by the prisons’ managers.

“We have gone to the place where the escape allegedly happened, and we have formed certain opinions. We don’t want to discuss that because we don’t want to interfere with the work that the DCI is doing,” he said.

He said the Government will protect whistle-blowers who will volunteer information that could lead to the rearresting of the prisoners who are described as dangerous with the manhunt teams especially paying attention to the country’s borders and exit points.

‘We are all mobilized and we have sent messages across the country and all exit and possible movement points out of the country. We are going to conduct a massive manhunt for those three. They are dangerous criminals and we have to get them. And we are going to get them.

The CS however urged Kenyans not to panic over the latest mysterious escape of dangerous prisoners saying security teams were on high alert and had managed to pre-empt many of the planned terror attacks.

Abikar was charged and convicted in 2019 over his links to Akhulunga was arrested in 2012 over a foiled attack on Kenya’s parliament and charged with possessing explosives, ammunition and firearms.

Akhulunga was arrested in 2012 over a foiled attack on Kenya’s parliament and charged with possessing explosives, ammunition and firearms.