Detectives arrest 3 officers from a Changamwe based company
Directorate of Criminal Investigation (DCI) officers from Nairobi have arrested three managers of a Changamwe based company for illegally manufacturing plastic carrier bags.
The Rhino Packaging Company's supervisor and two production managers were cornered at the company factory on Tuesday afternoon while they were allegedly in the process of manufacturing the banned bags.
DCI officers from Parklands in Nairobi had laid an ambush outside the company since Monday evening following a tip from members of the public about the activities going on there.
The government effected a ban on the use, manufacture, sale or importation of plastic bags on August 28, 2017.
The ban took effect after a six-month compliance window contained in a gazette notice by the Environment Ministry, lapsed.
Changamwe Sub-county police boss Ali Diema said two other persons managed to escape during a sting operation at the factory. Detectives are in pursuit of the two who escaped.
About 10 tonnes of plastic packaging materials were intercepted during the crackdown at the company conducted in collaboration with the National Environment Management Authority (Nema) and Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA).
"They have no license at all yet, they have been manufacturing polythene bags and also face masks without a license from Nema and Ministry of Health respectively," said Diema.
He said the firm has no clearance certificate from any government agency to manufacture or recycle the plastic packaging materials.
The three were detained at the Changamwe police station awaiting to be arraigned in court today.
