Charges Withdrawn in Police Ivory Case
September 2nd, 2024
On August 21st, 2024, police in Molo town, (South Rift Valley) arrested two men on a motorcycle in possession of five pieces of ivory weighing 10 kg. The ivory was inside a black bag that also contained a Scorpion Evo 3, 9mm carbine loaded with a 30-round magazine.
The carbine was Kenya government issue and in the possession of one of the accused, Ben Muiru Mwangi, a police officer attached to the Nakuru Central Police Station.
The following day, both accused were arraigned on charges relating to the ivory. Eleven days later, the charges were withdrawn for reasons never divulged. Prosecutors in Molo and Nakuru region advised that the direction had come from ODPP HQ in Nairobi. ODPP HQ pointed the finger of responsibility at their regional office in Nakuru.
The magistrate that initially took the plea was coincidentally transferred to Nyeri within days. While the withdrawal of charges may have been legitimate, the legitimacy was cast into doubt when the responsible agency, the ODPP, could not answer the ‘Why’ question, a question that should have been expected when one of the accused was a police officer found trafficking ivory while armed with an automatic carbine. MCCR/E1697/2024*, R. vs. Maina Gichure Kamus and Ben Muiru Mwangi {10 kg}
https://www.seej-africa.org/2024/10/03/molo-7th-police-officer-in-last-3-months-arrested-with-ivory/
