President William Ruto has listed 13 gangs that terrorised Kenyans in various parts of the country between May 2022 and August 2023.
In the State of National Security Report tabled before Parliament, the Head of State listed various criminal gangs including the Kamagira gang in Kiambu and the Confirm gang in Nakuru as some of the groups behind the rising insecurity in the country.
Mombasa-based gangs Wakali Wao and Panga Boys were also listed among the top 13 gangs in the country.
Other gangs included in the list were; MRC (Mombasa), Dambel, 26 Sheba, Kayole Jamaican (Nairobi), Mbogi la Islam, 3 Phase, Peaceland and Geta.
According to the report, the gangs were mostly active during the electioneering period as they were mostly used by politicians to mobilise their support base.
However, Ruto indicated that several arrests had been made as the police moved to scuttle the organised criminal units.
“During the period under review, a total of 1,113 suspect members of these gangs were arrested and arraigned in Court,” read the report in part.
“The highest number of suspects arrested was from the Kamagira Gang which accounted for 587 arrests followed by Confirm which stood at 295 arrests.”
On the other hand, Ruto reported to Parliament that gangs were mostly comprised of the youth, a phenomenon exacerbated by the rising rate of unemployment in the country.
Consequently, the Head of State highlighted four areas that his administration will focus on to deal with organised crime units.
“To address this menace the Government has established multi-agency operations aimed at dismantling these criminal gangs and enhancing community policing,” Ruto reported.
“Strengthened youth outreach programmes to address youth susceptibility to crime has also been undertaken.”
Empowerment programmes such as the Hustler Fund were also listed as mitigation measures.
