Armed bandits attacked a contingent of security personnel which included Kenya Defense Forces (KDF) officers who were leaving the burial of a blind teacher in Baringo County.
The Slain Kagir Primary School headteacher Thomas Kibet was laid to rest in an emotional sendoff on February 29, 2024, after gunmen killed him during an attack.
Police said that the attack prompted a brief exchange of fire before the security team was forced to change its route.
The gang staged the attack at around 5pm, after lying waiting on the main route leading to Loruk.
According to police reports, the bandits also attacked another village in the area, stealing an unknown number of livestock.
It is after the daring attack when they ran into the convoy leaving the burial event at the Kagir Lugger area.
Fortunately, no injuries were reported in the attack, but the bandits however managed to drive away with the animals.
Earlier before the burial, the bandits had staged another attack just moments before the remains of the slain teacher were brought to its final resting place.
The security team had to improvise and use drones as they escorted the remains of the slain teacher.
During the burial, local leaders called on the government to beef up security in the north rift and wipe out bandits.
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The local leaders had flown to the event after an earlier meeting with Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki in Nairobi.
KDF officers defend convoy
Heavy security personnel had been deployed in the area to protect mourners at the burial of the 55-year-old head teacher.
KDF officers led the convoy that was transporting mourners and the body of Kibet to the burial site.
Another KDF Landcruiser was positioned at the end of the convoy.
Also, additional officers manned the neighboring area, staying on the lookout for any suspicious activity, while others proceeded to the burial site.
CS Kindiki had met elected leaders from the County to get long-term solutions to national security threats.
He said the government is continuously reviewing the interventions required to address emerging, current, and historical emerging security challenges from the grassroots, upwards to the national level.
Additionally, the CS noted that cattle rustling in Northern Kenya has over the years become an organized criminal enterprise responsible for numerous deaths, poverty and displacement.
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“It’s impacts are severe. It deprives pastoral communities of their economic mainstay and aggravates the conditions of poverty in the rangelands, fueling communal grievances and revenge attacks,” he said.
The late blind teacher was shot dead by gunmen on February 10.
Police said that he was on a motorcycle with his wife and a child on their way to Kipcherere Secondary School for an event, when the armed bandits ambushed them.
That was the second time Kibet had encountered bandits.
When he was nine years old in 1973, gunmen shot at him through his right and left eyes rendering him blind.
The incident happened while he was herding his father’s livestock in Kagir area of Baringo North.
