Busia: Family demands answers after fish trader goes missing with Ksh.17M in cash

Tensions have escalated in Busia following the arrest and detention of several people after protests erupted in the town.

Demonstrators took to the streets demanding answers over the whereabouts of a businessman who has been missing for the past two weeks.

The businessman, fish trader Ibrahim Mohammed, reportedly disappeared shortly after being removed from a bus at a police roadblock. At the time of his alleged abduction, he was carrying Ksh.17 million in cash.

They had turned up in large numbers to demand answers over the whereabouts of Mohammed, who has been missing for two weeks. However, instead of receiving clarity, residents and Mohammed’s family were met with clouds of tear gas as police moved in to disperse the crowd.

"Sisi tumepoteza Ahmed sa hii ni wiki mbili hatujakosea mtu," said Abdi Hassan, a family member.

The family believes the incident amounts to an enforced disappearance, saying Mohammed went missing shortly after being removed from a Nairobi-bound bus at a police roadblock.

Residents and his relatives are now demanding that detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) locate and produce him without delay.

"Sisi tu tumekuja kudemand justice na tunajua majamaa wamemchukua ni DCI," said Amin, an area resident.

Several people were arrested during the demonstrations, with protesters accusing police of using excessive force, including live ammunition, to quell the unrest.

"Tukielekea kwa ofisi ya gavana wameanza kutumia risasi na sio eti tumeharibu mali ya watu," said Hassan.

The demonstrators further expressed frustration that, to date, they have received no official report on the disappearance of their relative, who was allegedly carrying $136,000 in cash, approximately Ksh.17 million, believed to belong to fish traders from the Democratic Republic of Congo.

They are calling for investigations to be fast-tracked, even as police have yet to issue a formal statement on the status of the probe.