Reports have emerged that armed criminals wreaking havoc in the banditry-prone North Rift region are tactical and conversant with sophisticated firearms, raising concerns that they might be getting training from skilled people.
Security officers and police reservists who have come face to face with the gun-wielding bandits in the war-torn region say the attacks are well-calculated, with the criminals using new tactics every time they strike.
Reports indicate that the criminals recently shot and deflated tyres of armoured police vehicles that were on a security operation in Tiaty and Kapedo.
Rift Valley Regional Coordinator George Natembeya said former soldiers are suspected of being involved in the training of the armed militia.
“Former officers who were in the military, police force and even those who get sacked go back home. It is possible that most of them end up imparting the skills they gained to the criminals. Others become bandits owing to the environment they were raised in,” said Mr Natembeya.
Mr Joseph Chesang, a former police reservist from Kesumet in Baringo North, who has served for seven years, raised concern that apart from being acquainted with firearms at a tender age, the criminals employ other techniques that are raising suspicion they could be getting training from skilled people, including former soldiers.
“These criminals are normally illiterate people who did not attend any school. Though children in that community get exposed to guns at a young age, they employ other skills when fighting that make us suspect that they get extra training,” said Mr Chesang.
Young bandits
The criminals, who hide ammunition in jerrycans, are usually armed with AK-47 and G3 rifles.
“These bandits are so skilled that before raiding, they divide themselves into groups such that there is a team tasked with driving away livestock, and the other with fighting those pursuing the animals. If there is a police camp around where they are attacking, they surround it to ensure the officers won’t respond to distress calls,” said Mr Chesang.
Another reservist, Mr Jackson Chemjor, who has also served for seven years in the volatile Chemoe boundary in Baringo North, said the bandits, who invade an area in large numbers, have more than enough ammunition and can fight the entire day without depleting them.
“Since they walk for long distances, they carry sugar, water and soaked maize on their backs to boost their energy,” said Mr Chemjor.
“They know how to handle all sophisticated firearms despite being illiterate. During raids, the way they take cover and lay ambush is a clear indication that these people are coached by skilled men,” he added.
A security officer who has served in the area narrated how daring the bandits are.
“These young bandits are very tactical and well trained on how to use sophisticated firearms. Although they are young, they can fight with security officers the whole day without getting tired or running out of ammunition. Some of them even fight while naked to camouflage with the rocky terrain and avoid being trapped by the thorny shrubs,” he said.
The bandits are tech-savvy and get intelligence reports warning them of impending operations, after which they flee to their hideouts.
The rugged terrain is conducive for them to hide and ambush security personnel.
They are comfortable with the terrain, giving them an upper hand over the security forces.
Mr Wesley Chemjor, a reservist, told the Nation the bandits carry out surveillance and have spies who pass on information prior to attacks.
“An officer recently confiscated a phone belonging to one of the suspects. To our amazement he had received dozens of missed calls in 24 hours, a clear indication that the raiders are tech-savvy and communicate with others on what is going on,” he said.
Sometimes the criminals destroy the communication mast erected at Silale hill to disable communication among security officers and also prevent locals from raising a distress call in case of an attack.
“For sure, I think they are being trained by retired soldiers who are skilled in carrying out such missions. The bandits don’t normally waste their ammunition. They wait for you to shoot more than 10 rounds then retaliate with one, which will probably hit the target,” explained the officer.
“These raiders have sophisticated firearms compared to security officers. When pursuing stolen livestock, we are careful because they may ambush us as they have mastered all the escape routes,” said the security officer.
The attires
The bandits don jungle green attires, which blend with the environment. The attires are most likely stolen from slain security personnel, according to officers.
“The criminals also communicate in their own ways. For instance, they use mirrors to pass on information. When raiders hiding in hills spot security officers or a perceived enemy, they use the reflection of the mirror to alert their counterparts in the other direction,” he explained.
Mr Mark Cherogony, a resident of Baringo North, said the criminals know when an operation will be carried out or when security officers are conducting patrols.
“Such behaviours raise eyebrows — one wonders where the criminals get such sensitive information if not from government officials.”
Colonel (Rtd) Moses Kwonyike linked the skills employed by the bandits to training provided by retired soldiers and security personnel who are still serving as well as those who have left the disciplined forces.
“I remember in the early 1990s, there was mass military recruitment of the Pokots as an affirmative action to embrace them. Most of them had ulterior motives — some wanted to be pilots and others communication experts so they could intercept military communication. But because of lack of education, they failed in their mission,” said Col Kwonyike.
“Eventually, most of them left the army with combat tactics. When they went back home, they became the instructors of bandits in the bush.”
He added: “The expertise the criminals are employing when fighting is gained from the retired soldiers. They should be investigated because these are the characters responsible for training the criminals.”
In December 2014, Mr Peter Kokoon Todokin, a former soldier, was in the company of his son and daughter when he was waylaid by armed bandits.
He was driving from Mochongoi to Loruk in Baringo North when his car was flagged down at Arabal by more than 30 Tugen men armed with AK-47 rifles.
Opened fire
It had just rained heavily and he was having difficulty navigating the muddy and rocky road. Seated on the co-driver’s seat was his son while his daughter sat in the back.
The gunmen ordered his daughter out of the car and then opened fire.
By the time the crackles from the AK-47s died, the bodies of Sergeant Todokin and his son lay slumped in their seats riddled with bullets.
The gunmen then set his vehicle ablaze. Kenya had lost one of her best marksmen while East Pokot had lost one of its greatest sons.
Six years after the brutal killings, the Nation has established that just a week before Sergeant Todokin was killed, about 1,000 head of cattle had been stolen from the Tugen at Kapindasum, a market centre in Baringo County that was mostly deserted because of incessant cattle raids.
The Pokot raiders who stole the cattle had months ago not only been recruited from the trading centres in Tiaty, where they were earning a living by doing odd jobs for a local politician, but had also undergone rigorous military training, according to locals.
When the Tugen got wind of what had transpired in the weeks leading to the raid, they suspected that Sergeant Todokin had been involved and lay an ambush for him.
To date, it is not clear whether the retired soldier was involved in planning the raid or training the bandits.
But, in hushed tones, residents of Tiaty and Arabal say Mr Todokin was involved in providing weapons and training the raiders.
Sergeant Todokin of the Kenya Defence Forces was one of the country’s finest marksmen. While still in the army, the sniper became the first African to win a gold medal in the prestigious World Long Range Championships in Mexico in 1992.
His last posting was at the Lanet Barracks in Nakuru County before he retired in 2005 to concentrate on mentoring amateur shooters at the Athi River shooting range. By then, he had also retired from the sharpshooting sport and moved into coaching.
It seemed like the perfect way to retire for the man who had brought Kenya a lot of accolades in a sport that was largely unknown in the country.
After nine years of coaching, the retired soldier decided to take one last stab at the sport with a view to participating in the 2015 World Long Range Championships in Ohio, US.
And in 2015, a former police officer believed to be behind the October 2014 Kapedo attack in which three officers and two civilians died, was shot dead as he attempted to escape from custody. Constable Lucas Majong Todong was being escorted from Nginyang police station in Tiaty to Kabarnet for further inquiries at around 5.40am in a police vehicle.
Investigations had shown that the suspect had on October 25, 2014 organised the attack, where three police officers who were escorting examination papers to Kapedo Mixed Secondary School, and two teachers, were killed. The attackers also burnt a police Land Cruiser.
On reaching Chesirimon centre, about eight kilometres from the police station, Mr Todong grabbed a gun belonging to one of the officers who was escorting him and attempted to escape. He was shot and the firearm recovered.
He was rushed to the Kabarnet hospital but was pronounced dead on arrival.