Two gang members remanded in Machakos over violent robberies across Kenya

Two suspected gang members were on Thursday remanded at the Machakos G.K. Prisons after they pleaded not guilty to robbery with violence charges leveled against them.

Vincent Avagalwa Salano and Purity Koki Makau were remanded at the Machakos men and women G.K prisons respectively, in line with an order from the Machakos Law Courts Senior Principal Magistrate James Omburah.

This came after the prosecution disputed their requests for release on cash bail or bond, arguing that they would be facing similar charges in multiple courts across Machakos, Kakamega and other regions of the country.

Omburah, who had initially granted the duo a Ksh. 300,000 bond each, revoked it and ordered them to be remanded pending transfer to the Kyumbi, Mlolongo, and Athi River police stations to face similar charges.

Salano and Makau are reportedly members of a four-person gang that uses private vehicles, among them a Toyota Wish, to pose as passengers on Mombasa Road, robbing unsuspecting Kenyans and then dumping them at different locations.

Makau is said to have served as the driver for the gang, which operated in Kyumbi, Mlolongo, and Sultan Hamud towns.

The police had been monitoring them before their arrests at Tassia Estate in Nairobi a few days ago.

Three victims recently reported to the police that they had been robbed of Ksh.80,000, Ksh.200,000, and Ksh.222,000, respectively, in a similar manner. They identified the same suspects as members of the gang that stole their hard-earned money.

According to police, two members of the same gang were recently arrested in Kakamega County, having been linked to several murder incidents.

So far, six cases have been reported against the gang at Machakos Police Station, four at Machakos DCI, three at Mlolongo Police Station, and three at Kyumbi Police Station.

Additional cases have also been reported in Kakamega and Londiani.