Guinean national, N'faly Doukoure, and Kenyan Kenneth Kamau Maina found with 131 pieces of ivory hidden in a water tanker
SEEJ-AFRICA THUMBNAIL:
- April 17, 2014, the Special Crime Prevention Unit seized 131 pieces of ivory from a water tanker vehicle parked at a petrol station near the T-Mall in Nairobi.
- Kenneth Kamau Maina and Guinean national, N’faly Doukoure were subsequently arrested. Four accomplices were not found.
- At the time, Kamau had another ivory trafficking charge before the Makadara Courts (Nairobi) for a 2160 kg seizure in August 2010 (see #17).
- In January 2015, Doukoure, definitively linked to a West African cartel headquartered in Kampala, Uganda, was ordered deported mid-trial
- Between 2013 and 2014, 7 Guinean nationals were arrested in Kenya with clear transnational implications; 2 were deported, 3 were released without charges and 2 were charged with one acquittal. The other case is on going.
- Since Doukoure’s deportation, definitive information as to case progression for Kamau has not been forthcoming and it is now in the “missing file” category.
- Regarding DNA analysis, and based on published reports in 2015 and 2018, the ivory subject to this seizure was never analyzed as to country of origin.
Two charged over Sh78m ivory seized at station
By NATION CORRESPONDENT
April 22nd, 2014
In Summary
- Mr N’Faye Doukoure and Mr Kenneth Kamau Maina did not take plea in the case and were remanded until Friday.
A Guinean and his Kenyan accomplice appeared in court Tuesday charged with being in possession of ivory worth Sh78 million.
Mr N’Faye Doukoure and Mr Kenneth Kamau Maina did not take plea in the case and were remanded until Friday.
The prosecution told the court that police are still investigating important leads in the case.
“ Police did not complete investigations because of the Easter Holidays. The probe can only be done with the help of the National Museums. It was a weekend and a holiday and we could not do that,” State Counsel Kioko Kamula told the court.
133 pieces
He urged the court to remand the suspects at Kilimani Police station for four days.
Police are also looking for owners of two vehicles the suspects allegedly used to carry the Ivory, the court heard.
Mr Kamula opposed an application by lawyer Ishmael Nyaribo seeking the accused to be released on bail saying that being a foreigner, Mr Doukoure could leave the country.
The prosecutor said Mr Maina has another poaching case at Makadara law courts and can jump bail. Mr Nyaribo claimed that police took Sh375,000 from Mr Doukoure and his Guinean passport.
The two were arrested on Thursday last week at a petrol station along Langata road in Nairobi with 133 pieces of the game trophies hidden in a vehicle.
Accused say police using their phones
By NATION REPORTER
In Summary
Mr N’Faye Doukoure and Mr Kenneth Kamau Maina said the “irregular” use of their mobile phones by the police was an infringement on their privacy.
- A Police officer summoned by the court to shed light on the cash did not show up in court Monday.
- The court ordered the prosecution to provide a report from mobile service providers to establish if the suspect’s mobile phones have been used irregularly.
A Guinean and a Kenyan charged with being in possession of ivory worth Sh78 million, Monday claimed that police had been using mobile phones confiscated from them during their arrest.
Mr N’Faye Doukoure and Mr Kenneth Kamau Maina said the “irregular” use of their mobile phones by the police was an infringement on their privacy.
“We want to bring to the attention of this court that police have no right to use the phones they confiscated from the accused.
This is intruding on their privacy,” lawyer Ishmael Nyaribo for Mr Doukoure told the court.
But the prosecution said the phones were part of the evidence to be produced during the hearing.
The accused further claimed that police are still holding Sh375,000 they took from Mr Doukoure when he was arrested two weeks ago at a petrol station on Lang’ata Road in Nairobi.
A Police officer summoned by the court to shed light on the cash did not show up in court Monday.
The court ordered the prosecution to provide a report from mobile service providers to establish if the suspect’s mobile phones have been used irregularly.
The court also reduced the bond terms for Mr Doukoure from Sh20 million with two Kenyan sureties to Sh10 million.
Mr Maina will also deposit Sh5 million bond down from Sh10 million granted last week.
The two are accused of having 133 pieces of ivory without a permit.
