KERIO VALLEY, Kenya – Police have arrested a key suspect in the brutal killing of Catholic priest Fr Allois Cheruiyot Bett, as a major security operation intensifies in the volatile Kerio Valley region.
The suspect was apprehended on Thursday at Tot Subcounty Hospital, where he had reportedly sought refuge while being pursued by locals and police reservists.
Residents, angered by the killing, handed him over to a Special Operations Group (SOG) dispatched to track down the priest’s killers.
Confirming the arrest, Elgeyo Marakwet County Police Commander Peter Mulinge said the hunt for the remaining suspects is ongoing.
“We have intensified the operation so that we get all the others,” Mulinge told reporters.
Security sources revealed that three suspects are still at large, days after the expiry of a four-day ultimatum given to local elders to help surrender the perpetrators.
The killing of Fr Bett has sparked national outrage and led to the temporary closure of the Catholic-run Chesongoch Mission Hospital, after staff fled the area citing safety concerns.
Deputy Inspector General of Police Eliud Lagat, who visited the area last weekend, issued a stern warning: if the suspects are not surrendered voluntarily, police will “use all necessary force” to capture them.
“If you will not help us get them, then it will not be business as usual,” Lagat said after local elders requested time to help facilitate the arrests.
Fr Bett, 35, was shot dead in an ambush in Kerio Valley, a region long plagued by cycles of banditry and intercommunal violence. He had served less than three years in the priesthood.
The burial will take place on Tuesday, June 3, at Holy Family Parish Church, Olessos in Nandi County, according to Bishop Dominic Kimengich of the Eldoret Diocese.
“What we have seen in Kerio Valley is enough. The killings have to stop so that our people can enjoy peace and development,” said Bishop Kimengich, who has called for swift justice.
Several leaders have condemned the murder and urged the local community to cooperate with law enforcement.
Governors Stephen Sang (Nandi), Wesley Rotich and Jonathan Bii (Elgeyo Marakwet), along with Nandi Woman Representative Cynthia Muge and Uasin Gishu Assembly Speaker Phillip Muigei, have all demanded accountability.
Governor Rotich apologized to the Church, emphasizing that the act was carried out by individuals—not the entire community.
Governor Sang said it was unacceptable that residents knew the killers but failed to surrender them out of fear or intimidation.
“We want justice to be done for our late Fr Bett, and those criminals must be surrendered to face the law,” said Sang.
He warned that failure to cooperate could lead to a broader security crackdown affecting innocent residents.
Fr Bett’s killing is the latest in a wave of insecurity incidents in the Kerio Valley, prompting renewed calls for long-term peace and development strategies in the region.
