NAIROBI, Kenya, Dec 19 – A drug peddler in Lamu has been arrested by police officers following a 30-minute chase at the end of which he dived into the Indian Ocean to evade capture.
The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) Friday that the suspect who was also carrying a panga was arrested with the help of marine police officers who were on a routine patrol.
“Residents living along the Lamu seafront were treated to a dramatic spectacle yesterday, pitting a drug peddler against police officers based in Lamu island. This is after the peddler a known ex-convict who was also carrying panga, resisted arrest and plunged into the sea,” the DCI said Saturday.
“What followed was a dramatic chase in the stormy sea waters, as the peddler swum towards the deep sea to evade arrest and the determined officers battled the currents closely behind. In a scene lasting about 30 minutes, the thug who would occasionally disappear under the water only to reappear floating at different points gave our two men the most challenging assignment of their career,” the agency stated.
Two other individuals including one who attempted to obstruct the officers while they escorted the suspect were also apprehended.
The second suspect is accused of throwing a projectile at the arresting officers seriously injuring one of them according to the DCI.
All the three suspects were held in custody awaiting arraignment.
Drug peddling has made drug abuse at coastal region a big menace with thousands of youths sinking into addiction. Others have ended up losing their lives because of drug wars among rivals in business deals gone bad.
