MACHAKOS, Kenya – A man believed to be a key suspect in the recent armed robbery at a popular restaurant in Nairobi’s Westlands area has been shot dead during a gunfight with detectives in Joska, Machakos County.
The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) said the suspect was also linked to a wider criminal syndicate suspected of carrying out a string of violent robberies across Nairobi, Kiambu and Machakos counties.
According to investigators, detectives from the DCI Headquarters, working jointly with officers from DCI Matungulu, acted on intelligence that the suspect was hiding at his girlfriend’s house in Joska Town.
When the officers identified themselves and ordered those inside to open the door, the suspect allegedly opened fire through a kitchen window, forcing detectives to return fire in self-defence.
After securing the house, officers found the suspect with fatal gunshot wounds inside the residence.
Police recovered a Beretta pistol loaded with a magazine containing four rounds of 9mm ammunition, additional live rounds, spent cartridges and three mobile phones from the scene.
The firearm has been forwarded to the National Police Service Forensic Laboratory for ballistic examination to establish whether it was used in other violent crimes.
Investigators believe the suspect played a central role in the recent armed robbery along General Mathenge Road in Spring Valley, Westlands, where gunmen stormed a restaurant and robbed customers of their valuables before fleeing on motorcycles.
During the late-night attack, which lasted less than a minute, two armed men entered the restaurant pretending to be customers before pulling out pistols and ordering diners to surrender their belongings.
The gang made away with seven mobile phones and an HP laptop before firing two shots into the air as they escaped towards the Parklands area on two motorcycles.
Police later recovered a spent 9mm cartridge at the scene, while preliminary investigations traced some of the stolen mobile phones to Kariobangi.
Security cameras captured the dramatic robbery, showing masked gunmen pointing pistols at terrified customers, who scrambled for cover as the suspects fired into the air before escaping.
The DCI said detectives are pursuing the remaining members of the gang, with a manhunt underway to dismantle the criminal network and bring all those involved to justice.