Police arrest four suspects, recover 62 stolen phones in Kayole

Kayole Sub-county Police Commander John Owuoth. [Pkemoi Nge'noh, Standard]

Police in Kayole have arrested four suspects believed to be part of a gang terrorising Nairobi residents through mobile phone snatching and robberies in city estates.

The operation, conducted on May 12, 2026, led to the recovery of 62 mobile phones from a house in the Saika area along Kangundo Road, where detectives believe the gadgets were being stored before being resold on the black market.

Officers also recovered a Falcon pistol, 16 rounds of ammunition, three motorcycles, a television set and several suspected stolen household items.

Kayole Sub-county Police Commander John Owuoth said preliminary investigations indicate the firearm is from Ethiopia, prompting detectives to widen investigations to establish how it entered the country.

“The type of firearm recovered shows that it is commonly used in Ethiopia. That is why we have extended our investigations to establish how it came into their hands or whether there is a bigger syndicate behind these types of pistols,” Owuoth said.

The police boss revealed that the gang’s activities had become so rampant that even police officers had fallen victim.

“One of the mobile phones happens to belong to a police officer working in Nairobi traffic, who reported that somebody on a motorbike snatched it and sped off,” he said.

According to Owuoth, the suspects usually use motorcycles fitted with altered number plates to evade detection by CCTV cameras during robberies across Nairobi.

Investigators have also established that some of the recovered motorcycles had allegedly been stolen from credit financing companies before being sold to unsuspecting buyers.

Police have urged members of the public who may have lost phones or other valuables in similar incidents to visit Kayole Police Station and identify the recovered items.