Police in Kisumu, western Kenya, have recovered a burnt shell of a suspected stolen car in Kajulu, Kisumu East Sub-county, as operation to dismantle a motor vehicle theft syndicate intensifies in the area. Until about a decade ago, Nairobi, Mombasa at the coast and major towns in central Kenya bore the unenviable tags of centres vehicle theft in Kenya.

Then, the criminals had tentacles in Tanzania, Uganda, South Sudan and South Africa. With the help Interpol, the networks were broken but the latest high car theft incidence in Kisumu seems to suggest the networks are on a rebound or new ones have come up.

The discovery brings to 17 the number of stolen vehicles recovered in the lakeside city over the past five days. As was the case in the past, the criminals seem target Japanese made cars, especially the Toyota brand.

According to Kisumu East Sub-county Police Commander Edward Wafula members of the public in Kamenya Village, West Kajulu Location, alerted the police after spotting the wreckage of a vehicle dumped in a thicket.

A team of officers from Mamboleo Police Post, accompanied by detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) Kisumu East and Scenes of Crime (CSI) personnel visited the scene and found a completely burnt vehicle shell.

Wafula said preliminary investigations revealed that a local man identified as Dren Onyango, 27, allegedly brought the vehicle believed to have been stolen in Kitale to his compound on October 7, at around 3am.

He reportedly dismantled it later that day, with the help of mechanic by removing the engine and auxiliary parts before burning the shell and concealing it in the thicket where it was found. The stripped parts, he said, were transported to an unknown place, possibly for sale as second-hand spares.

He noted that a search at the suspect’s homestead led to the recovery of a pair of number plates, KBV 866V which had been dumped in a pit latrine.

Records indicate that a white Toyota Baradoa, bearing the same registration number had been reported stolen by its owner Geoffrey Kiprop at the Kitale Police Station, bearing OB No. 83/30/9/2025. The suspect has since gone into hiding and is being sought by detectives.

The burnt shell was photographed, documented and towed to Mamboleo Police Post yard as investigations continue. In a related operation, police at Kasagam Police Station, arrested one suspect and recovered another stolen vehicle following an intelligence-led crackdown in Butere Sub-County in Kakamega.

The officers raided a homestead in Muyundi Sub-location, believed to belong to the father-in-law of the main suspect in the syndicate Evans Otieno Meda. During the operation, the officers recovered a white Toyota Axio, registration number KDH 490S, suspected to have been stolen.

The vehicle was found hidden in a compound belonging to Mzee Anangwe, the father-in-law of the prime suspect. Another suspect Musa Abdalla, identified as the driver and an accomplice in the theft, was arrested at the scene and escorted back to Kisumu under heavy police guard.

The vehicle has been detained at Kasagam Police Station as an exhibit, while the suspect remains in custody awaiting further action.

Police say the ongoing operation is part of an intensified effort to dismantle a network believed to be ferrying stolen vehicles from various parts of the country into Kisumu for dismantling and resale.

• A Tell Media / KNA report / Bby Chris Mahandara