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Thika businessman among 2 suspects arrested over KPLC theft


Detectives have arrested two suspects over vandalism of Kenya Power & Lighting (KPLC) electricity infrastructure.

Thomas Anasi, 38, a former line KPLC technician and 36-year old Joseph Kagwi, a Thika-based businessman were arrested following the disappearance of electricity cables and other materials meant for a rural electrification project in Wundanyi, Taita Taveta County.

Before their disappearance, the materials worth millions of shillings were at a site in Kushe area, where the government was in the process of connecting locals to the national grid.

The duo, who are well connected to insiders at KPLC, masterminded the disappearance of wires, rods, conductors, and other equipment meant for the project, on January 28, 2022.

The highly organised syndicate comprising of technicians and engineers, targets electricity connection sites and power lines and has been responsible for plunging parts of the country to darkness.

The syndicate deployed a crane truck that loaded and ferried the materials from the site to a yard in Nairobi.

The first suspect was arrested in Kayole Nairobi who led to the arrest of his accomplice in Thika. 

Preliminary investigations have revealed that Kagwi is well connected to engineers and technicians working at KPLC, who provide him with information on the sites where electricity connection is ongoing, before the equipment disappears.

Following the operation, the crane truck used to load and ferry the materials was impounded and it is currently detained at Kayole police station. Also recovered were some of the stolen cables and metal rods which find their way to the black market, through Kagwi and his associates.


The arrest of the two suspects comes barely three weeks after President Uhuru Kenyatta, banned dealings in scrap metal due to increased cases of vandalism, targeting critical national infrastructure.

Last November, operations along the busy Mombasa-Nairobi Standard Gauge railway (SGR) had to be stopped for two hours, after gauge blocks were vandalised from the line.

Meanwhile, the two suspects are currently being grilled by detectives as the operation to net more suspects continues.

 

 

 

 

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