Police in Nyanchwa Police station, in the outskirts of Kisii County headquarters, are holding six suspects, including five dealers in narcotics and one dealer of counterfeit alcohol, in an operation led by the National Authority for the Campaign Against Alcohol and Drug Abuse (NACADA).
In the same operation, several brooms of bhang of unknown value and contraband alcohol have been impounded.
Addressing the press after arresting the five suspects of the narcotics crime, Kisii County Police Commander Ronald Kirui said they were pursuing the main suspect from whose premises the brooms were retrieved at Mwamogesa village, Kitutu Central Ward, in the county.
Kirui expressed disappointment that the suspect allegedly continued with the criminal activity despite having an ongoing court case of a similar offence.
The Police Commander explained how the consignment of bhang included 79 brooms of suspected cannabis sativa, a motorbike suspected of being used to ferry the substance, rolling materials of the drug and several sacks used to package the commodity.
Kirui noted that the main suspect, who is currently out on bond, was before the court for being in possession of 292 kg of the same substance.
Applauding the public for surveillance and tip-offs, the Police Commander called for a multisectoral approach to stamp out the vice from the community.
He called out to the main suspect to surrender himself to the police; otherwise, the long arm of the law would catch up with him.
The Commander also castigated neighbouring residents for condoning the crime in their locality, saying they must have been aware of the activities.
Head of Enforcement at NACADA Nicholas Kosgey decried the rising cases of drug addiction in the area, especially of bhang.
He attributed the rising incidents of motorbike accidents, among other anti-social behaviour within the community, to bhang addiction.
Kosgey assured that NACADA would upscale operations around the country going forward and applauded the National Police Service for cooperating with anti-narcotics organisations to nip out the crime.
Later on in Kisii town, one more suspect was arrested for allegedly dealing in contraband alcohol in a wines and spirits store.
By Jane Naitore
