Angry Naivasha residents lynch middle aged suspect believed to be behind series of robberies

Irate residents of a Naivasha estate lynched a middle aged suspect believed to be behind a spate of robberies around the lake side town.

Trouble started after word went round that there were thugs intending to raid several homes overnight in Site estate forcing them to lay an ambush.

According to an eye witness James Kimani, the residents found five thugs armed with crude weapons on their first mission to raid the home of a prominent Naivasha businessman.

Kimani said they were angered by the rising cases of robberies in the estate and descended on the thugs with all manner of weapons.

He said three of them managed to escape while one was lynched and the other arrested by police who arrived minutes after the incident.

"The suspect was saved by police from lynching and this should serve as a warning to the rest who escaped that we will not sleep until we find them," he said.

He said the area has been witnessing criminal incidents targeting homes noting that they had formed groups that will be patrolling the estate overnight.

Kimani said some residents who have been robbed confessed to having seen the suspect who was lynched during his raids and termed the incident as a major boost towards securing the estate.

Meanwhile scores of passengers were injured four of them seriously following an accident involving a canter and a matatu along Nakuru-Nairobi highway.

The accident at Ihindu trading center occurred after a Nissan Matatu hit a canter on the rear side with the four passengers sustaining serious wounds.

According to an eye witness Peter Kirika, the road was foggy and the visibility was poor when the accident occurred.

"The driver of the matatu that was heading uphill did not notice a canter in front and it was by luck that there were no fatalities," he said.

Naivasha OCPD Samuel Waweru confirmed the accident saying the injured passengers were rushed to several hospitals in Naivasha and its environs.

He said in the first incident they were holding the suspect for interrogation before he is arraigned in court.

-Anthony Gitonga