Military men and police caught in ‘friendly fire’

Four Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) soldiers were on Tuesday evening arrested following a nasty altercation with their counterparts from the National Police Service in Lodwar town.

Following the arrest, the KDF soldiers, led by Lieutenant Okello, raided Lodwar Police Station bringing to a standstill proceedings at the nearby Lodwar Law Courts as members of the public watched in utter shock.

According to the police, the altercation happened between Constable Cleophas Makhapila, who had been deployed on day road block duties together with county enforcement officers and KDF soldiers, who later disarmed him and drove away with his firearm.

The National Police Service spokesperson Dr Resila Onyango only confirmed the incident and said the matter was ‘under control.’ Officer reported that around 11am while manning a road block in company of his colleague, Constable Robert Maina and two officers from the county, they were assaulted by the soldiers who claimed they delayed in removing the spikes from the road.

The driver of the KDF’s water bowser is reported to have alighted and slapped the officer. Another officer then grabbed the police officer’s AK47 rifle and cocked it before ordering Constable Makhapila to go down on his knees but the officer refused.

The KDF soldier then fired four rounds in the air before they left with the rifle to their military camp at Loturerei.

The police officer alerted his colleagues and the Turkana Central police commander Samuel Boit mobilized other officers and they proceeded to Moi Gardens.

“Upon arrival, three KDF officers were seated in a shade and the driver was inside the water bowser. When they were ordered to surrender, the driver cocked his AK47 assault rifle. This prompted officers to shoot in the air and the driver surrendered by alighting from the said water bowser and left his rifle inside,” a brief to police headquarters read.

The police commander and his team managed to recover two AK47 assault rifles inside the cabin of the water bowser.

The KDF officers were requested to drive their water bowser to Lodwar police station for investigations to be launched, but the team commander, a Sergeant, maintained that they were not going to the station.

They were then arrested and escorted to the station but upon arrival at the police station, they found that a section of KDF officers under the command of an officer of the rank of a Lieutenant, had arrived onboard a Toyota Landcruiser and cordoned the station.

The police commander intervened and the senior KDF officer directed his juniors to go back to the vehicles.

Police said the arrested KDF soldiers refused to provide their identities and were booked as ‘unknown’ and to be charged with robbery with violence.