Nairobi: Video of gang robbing motorists steps from army headquarters shocks Kenyans

The incident, which triggered widespread outrage on social media, showed the scruffy suspects using a rope stretched across the roadway in Hurlingham, Nairobi, to physically obstruct oncoming traffic and force vehicles to a sudden stop before swooping in to rob the drivers.

The video clip circulating online captured the shocking nerve of the operation.

Positioned dangerously close to heavily secured military installations and embassies, the group leveraged a simple yet effective tactic: hoisting a rope across the road, effectively trapping motorists in traffic or forcing them to brake hard or slow down.

Once a car was immobilised, the young assailants ambushed the drivers, demanding valuables, mobile phones, and cash in plain view of surrounding passersby and flowing traffic.

Hurlingham Shopping Centre....
Goonism in Kenya is rising to daring and uncomfortable levels. Watch a group of street boys put a rope across the road, stopping motorists and demanding money on Argwings Kodhek Road. On the side of the road are bigger boys with sticks.… pic.twitter.com/ooh4YMGC6U

The proximity of the crime to an army barracks particularly alarmed Kenyans on X, with many also pointing out that State House also wasn't too far from the scene of the crime.

Normally, traffic corridors running adjacent to military zones or protected abodes are typically presumed safe due to the nearby security presence, but the perpetrators exploited brief lulls in traffic and patrol intervals to execute quick - and highly reckless - ambushes.

Following the circulation of the footage and widespread complaints from Kenyans, law enforcement officers launched an immediate crackdown in the area.

Authorities have confirmed that the suspects featured in the video have been tracked down and arrested.

Photos circulating online show all the young ruffians all rounded up, most of them looking badly dishevelled and rough, possibly a clear testament of their long-running involvement in street criminality.

The incident highlights a growing concern over daylight street crime and youth gang activities in Nairobi, with Kenyans expressing fears over the emboldening of deadly thugs and lawless goons in a city choking with police officers at all street junctions.

"Doing this 100 meters from DoD is crazy, roughly 900 meters from the Chinese embassy and Statehouse as well. This is what Murkomen, DCI, The Kenya Police and the people in charge of security have turned this country to. A country for state approved militia," someone wrote on X.

Florence Gathoni said: "Nairobi is the new Gotham City. Security is a sensitive matter and this docket should be handled by someone who understands it. Sadly, security is allocated the highest budget, traffic collects their daily bread and normal citizen have to go through this again!"

On his part Nick Waithaka said: "Stealing in broad daylight using a rope right next to an Army Barracks? The sheer audacity of this generation of thugs is unhinged. If thieves can comfortably operate metres away from soldiers, what hope does the ordinary citizen have in the estates?"