Eight suspects arrested for stealing subsidized fertilizer

Eight suspects have been arraigned in court for allegedly stealing a subsidized fertilizer that was meant to be delivered to farmers across Kenya.
The disappearance of the fertilizer which occurred between April 18 to 27 was reported by the Kenya National Trading Company logistics officer Moses Kata.

The company had contracted Yellow Arrow Express Limited to deliver the fertilizer to various destinations in the country.
However, only two trucks out of ten delivered the subsidized commodity to their intended destinations in Kericho and Ol Moran, Laikipia County. The remaining eight trucks, carrying 4,520 bags of fertilizer were diverted to an unknown location.

The disappearance was uncovered after a consignment of 560 bags which had been dispatched on April 27 to the National Cereals and Produce Board in Lessos, Nandi County was reported missing. The DCI said that the driver of the truck who was carrying the consignment received a call from an unidentified caller who instructed him to stop at a shopping center 25 kilometers away from Lessos.
“A call from unidentified caller posing as an agent of KNTC who instructed him to stop at a shopping centre 25 kilometres away from Lessos. The consignment was offloaded and loaded into two waiting trucks after stamping the delivery instruction with a KNTC Eldoret receiver stamp before the lorries drove off to an unknown destination,” DCI stated.
The DCI said that the fertilizer was offloaded and loaded into two waiting trucks before they drove off to an unknown destination.

The suspects pleaded not guilty to charges of Conspiracy to Commit a Felony Contrary to Section 393 of the Penal Code & Stealing Goods in Transit Contrary to Section 297(c) of the Penal Code. The arraignment follows a meticulous probe by detectives based at the DCI Operations Unit.

However,the suspects are believed to have taken advantage of the ongoing efforts by the government to help farmers access the commodity at a reduced cost. The case has prompted swift action by the detectives who continues with the search for other suspects involved in the theft.

Morever, farmers across Kenya continue to face challenges accessing subsidized inputs such as fertilizer, which is crucial for their crop production. The theft of the subsidized fertilizer only exacerbates these challenges and highlights the need for increased security measures to ensure that necessary inputs reach their intended destinations.