Police in Kirinyaga County have arrested suspected donkey thieves who confessed of slaughtering stolen donkeys and selling the meat in Nairobi.
The four suspects who were captured by an irate mob on Saturday May 18, 2024, in Kaminji village, Mwea West escaped death by a whisker after police arrested them.
Angry residents from the village detained the suspected thieves and set one of their vehicles on fire.
In a statement, Kirwarwa Sub-location Assistant Chief Zacharia Miano Muchiri said that the suspects were caught slaughtering 30 donkeys near River Sagana.
He further said that three other suspects managed to escape following the ambush by the villagers.
“Some of the suspects were found loading meat in two vehicles; one a Pajero and the other one a Probox vehicle which was set on fire before we intervened as they wanted to set the pajero vehicle on fire,” the Assistant Chief said.
Donkey thief makes confession
According to the chief, police faced a challenging task in preventing the irate mob from lynching the suspects.
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It is upon the confession from one of the suspects on selling stolen donkey meat that the situation defused.
The suspect revealed that they sold the slaughtered meat at Burma Market in Nairobi, while also offering details about their operation while attempting to save their lives.
“Please don’t kill us. We will tell you everything. We sell the donkey meat at Burma Market and pay those who slaughter Ksh 10,000 after the business ends, “he revealed.
One of the village chiefs highlighted the severity of the crime revealing that a colt was recovered indicating that one of the animals could have been pregnant.
The arrest of the suspects is similar to another incident back in December 2023 when Police arrested 10 people suspected of illegally slaughtering 15 donkeys and attempting to transport them to Nairobi.
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According to a police report, the suspects were nabbed at Kwa Kathoka in Makueni County while transporting the meat to Shauri Moyo Market in Nairobi in two vehicles.
Eastern regional police commander Joseph Ole Napeiyan said the suspects admitted that they had slaughtered 15 animals, which were also suspected to have been stolen.
After an investigation with health officials, the police say 25 skinned heads of donkeys were recovered.
Ban lift
The trade in donkey meat and hide was legalized in Kenya in 2012 but the government of Kenya banned the slaughter of the animals in 2020.
The High Court of Kenya them lifted the ban on donkey slaughterhouses, allowing them to resume selling meat and hides to Asian markets.
The African Union on its part announced a 15-year continent-wide ban on the commercial slaughter of the donkeys for their skin across all member states in February 2024
Although Veterinary experts say donkey meat is safe for humans, its consumption is yet to gain ground in Kenya.
A report from the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organisation (KALRO) showed that more than 4,000 donkeys were reported stolen over the period from April 2016 to December 2018.
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