The hunt is on for gang members involved in stealing, stripping and reselling stolen cars. Detectives raiding and busting car theft syndicates in Nairobi is fast becoming a norm. This gang that has been in the police radar had some of its members who were arrested in unclear circumstances and locations lead the cops to their yard in Nairobi’s Kariobangi South.
Further investigations have revealed that there are many of such yards rebranding and selling cars or parts of stolen cars. Kenyan Bulletin interviewed a local, Fredrick Makaya not his real name who said that the arrests must have been after a deal went sour. The illicit business is thriving because the players are rogue officers and hood gangs. It’s booming and on average they sell four to five of such cars in a month and most of the yards belong to rogue detectives.
Community policing brought about by the defunct or slow functioning Nyumba Kumi Initiative don’t snoop to these ends. They snoop when they can, to households and that’s like the limit. Many illegal businesses are run within neighborhoods or designated areas without the knowledge of the locals but are posing great dangers to the youth around.
High profile members in the government are the shot callers in this field. Players in the industry dealing in spare part sales complain that these bad boys and rogue cops are pushing their businesses to the brinks of closure. Many buyers prefer ex-german, ex-Japan car parts, not brand new parts. That’s where these rogue operators make a killing.
Kariobangi South and the strip of Light Industries stretching from Kariobangi is filled with used cars and wrecked cars. The stretch from Korogocho Bridge to Kwa Mbao Police Station is full of wrecked german cars only, Mercedes Benz and Volkswagen.
How all wrecked german cars end to that place at the road side and remains secure without a fence or guard is a mystery that KB had to find out. Many plain clothed cops hoover around to protect the business from street children and mechanics who steal parts and sell.
