wo suspected narcotics traffickers have been arrested in Kitui County after detectives and other security officers intercepted cannabis consignments in two separate operations, including one in which bhang was allegedly hidden inside a meal meant for a remandee.
The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) said the arrests were made in separate incidents at Kitui Police Station and along the Thika–Garissa Highway at Kanyonyoo, as multi-agency teams stepped up the fight against narcotics trafficking.
In the first incident, officers at Kitui Police Station arrested 24-year-old Dickens Tito after he allegedly attempted to smuggle bhang into the station disguised as food for a remandee.
According to the DCI, officers on duty inspected a parcel of rice and discovered 69 rolls of bhang and 33 matchsticks concealed inside.
Tito was arrested immediately and taken into custody as detectives began investigating the attempted smuggling of the narcotics into the police facility.
The second arrest was made at a roadblock along the Thika–Garissa Highway in Kanyonyoo, where a multi-agency security team stopped a Public Service Vehicle travelling from Kitui to Embu.
Officers conducting a routine luggage inspection discovered a pink briefcase in the rear boot of the vehicle. The luggage was identified as belonging to 29-year-old Justice Kabila Njanja.
A search of the briefcase uncovered 13 bales of cannabis sativa tightly wrapped in yellow sealing tape, according to the DCI.
Njanja was arrested at the scene and placed in custody as investigators pursued further details surrounding the suspected transportation of the narcotics.
The two suspects remain in custody while investigations continue ahead of their expected arraignment. The seized cannabis consignments have been preserved as exhibits.
The DCI described the operations as part of its wider efforts to disrupt narcotics trafficking, saying it remains “steadfast in the fight against narcotics trafficking” and continues to work with other law-enforcement agencies to intercept illicit consignments and bring suspected traffickers to justice.
The two cases also illustrate the different methods allegedly used to conceal and transport suspected narcotics—from hiding bhang inside food being delivered to a remandee to transporting large quantities in luggage aboard a public service vehicle.
Investigations are expected to establish whether the suspects were acting independently or whether the intercepted consignments were connected to wider narcotics distribution networks.
For now, both suspects remain in police custody, while detectives continue gathering evidence ahead of further legal action.
The DCI said the seized narcotics will remain in custody as exhibits as the investigations progress.
