The teenage criminal gangs of Kitale

Some of them operate under the guise of boda boda workers but end up targeting unsuspecting locals, causing damage and looting property, especially at night.

Some young criminals never get to enjoy the loot. They are killed in police raids, by rival gangs or lynched by the mafia.

The vast Tuwan and Matisi estates on the outskirts of Kitale town are said to be hideouts for emerging teenage criminal gangs.

According to statistics from the Child Protection Department, there are more than 3,000 neglected minors in the region, most of whom are suspected of involvement in crime.

Jonnah Maingi, the county’s director of child protection, has criticised irresponsible parents who abandon their children to criminal activities and other anti-social activities.

“We have parents who don’t know what their teenagers are doing or where they are going. We have a problem with teenage pregnancy and other voices because of the increasing number of neglected and abandoned children,” Mr Maingi noted.

Jane Gitonga, a resident of Mitume booster area, recounted her traumatic experience when she returned from work in Kitale town, in the hands of teenage criminal gangs.

“The boys with primitive weapons stopped me on my way home and threatened to rape and kill me but I begged them not to kill me. I gave them Sh40,000 from my company to spare me,” she recounted her ordeal during a high-level security meeting chaired by County Commissioner Gideon Oyagi on Tuesday, August 27.

Local officials, including Nyumba Kumi and village elders, indicated that there is a lot of illegal substance use in the Matisi and Tuwan region. This is the main cause of insecurity in the area.

“There is a serious disconnect between police chiefs and police officers in our area because police chiefs arrest criminals but police officers have been the weak link in helping suspects evade justice,” Samuel Mwaura noted.

During the high-level security meeting chaired by Trans Nzoia District Commissioner Gideon Oyagi on August 24, the government ordered 27 suspects accused of a violent robbery, including six students, to surrender to the police or face the full force of the law.

The administrator issued the orders after a high-level meeting of security agencies in the affected areas, where residents provided names of suspected criminal gangs.

“Some of them have criminal records from primary school to secondary school, but I want to warn them to surrender before we catch them,” Mr Oyagi said.

County Detective Paul Songok noted that investigators gather information about criminal activity, including marking hot spots before taking on gangs.

Francis Were, member of the Tuwan district council, blamed the rise of criminal gangs in the area on irresponsible parenting.

He accused a number of political leaders in the area of ​​financing and supporting criminal youth for their own political gain.

“Some of these youths are being used by politicians to create chaos even in public forums. We want action to be taken against such leaders,” Mr Were noted.

Saboti MP Caleb Amisi warned young people in the area earlier this week to avoid engaging in crime and instead engage in activities that can earn them money.

Mr Amisi blamed high unemployment and irresponsible leaders who only use the youth during elections and neglect their plight once in power.

“I have organised an empowerment programme where I support youths to start businesses and engage in group projects to save them from drug abuse and criminality,” Amisi said last Sunday as he gave Sh1 million to various groups of youths from Matisi to start business projects.