Three people including a police officer are nursing serious bullet wounds after they were shot by thugs who also robbed two business people at Kipkaren market on Friday evening. A gang of five men armed with two AK47 riffles stormed the trans-border market between Kakamega and Uasin Gishu counties at about 6:30 pm and shot to innocent customers who had gone for evening shopping at the market.
Speaking to West Media from her hospital bed at the Lumakanda sub county hospital in Lugari, one of the victims Consepta Naliaka Sudi said she had gone to do shopping in preparation for the burial of her late aunt Janet Nambuye Wekesa who was supposed to be buried on Saturday when she was shot in the chest.
“We had gone with my cousin to do shopping in preparation for the burial of my aunt but immediately we entered the shop as we prepared to place our order, we had a loud bang in the air we rushed out and as I turned back to get a glimpse of what was happening I was hit by a bullet in the chest,” explained Ms. Naliaka.
Another victim Richard Obore Mamai, a truck driver who hails from Munyuki village, in Lumakanda location Lugari Sub County said he had just delivered goods in the neighbouring Uganda and he was driving back to the Kenyan coast before he decided to do some shopping for his family at the market when he met the tragedy.
“I was on my way from Uganda but on reaching Kipkaren I parked my truck at one of the petrol station where I believed it would be safe. I decided to do some shopping for my family at the market but immediately I had picked my shopping I was shot twice on my left
thigh as I left the shop,” explained Mamai.
The thugs then robbed Mr. Christopher Barasa a wholesale shop owner an unknown amount of money. They also raided an adjacent M-Pesa shop before they left walking courageously wielding their guns and vanished into a maize plantation about 400 meters away. “They just left walking majestically, two of them were waving guns while three were carrying bags on their backs,” said an eye witness.
The victims were rescued and rushed to Lumakanda sub county hospital before being transferred to Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital Eldoret.
Police officers from Lumakanda responded and pursued the gang. They combed through
the maize plantation where one of the officers was shot by the thugs on the arm.
Confirming the incident Lugari OCPD Bernard Mwangangi said the suspects are still at large but his officers have launched a manhunt for them. Mwangangi has therefore called on members of the public with information regarding the attack to confidentially avail it to police.