Kisumu highway sweep: 15 suspects held, alleged gang leader jumps from van
Key points
- DCI stopped three vehicles on the Kisumu–Kericho highway and arrested 15 suspected gang members.
- Vehicles named: grey Toyota Noah KCR 790A and two white Hiace vans KDM 377M and KDE 819U (Nyakija Classic Shuttle, Kisumu–Migori).
- Recovered: phones, machetes, pangas, knives, ropes, a metal rod/club and other suspected crime tools.
- Detectives say leader Oliver Jaoko, also called Oliveti, jumped through a window and is still sought.
On the Kisumu–Kericho highway the stop came first, the missing passenger later. Directorate of Criminal Investigations teams pulled over three vehicles after intelligence that an armed group was moving along the road, Eastleigh Voice reported.
Officers from the Operations Support Unit worked with the Crime Research and Intelligence Bureau (Nyanza) and DCI Kisumu Central. The suspects, detectives said, were in a grey Toyota Noah, registration KCR 790A, and two white Toyota Hiace vans, KDM 377M and KDE 819U, running as Nyakija Classic Shuttle on the Kisumu–Migori route. A search turned up mobile phones, assorted machetes and pangas, knives, ropes, a metal rod or club and other items they say were meant for crime. Fifteen people went into custody pending arraignment. One man detectives named as the leader — Oliver Jaoko, also called Oliveti — escaped by jumping through a vehicle window and is still being hunted. DCI framed the job as disrupting a network before a strike, and again advertised #FichuaKwaDCI on toll-free 0800 722 203 and WhatsApp 0709 570 000.
Fifteen in the cells, one still on the road
A highway haul of pangas is not a closed file while the named leader is free. Shuttle firms also owe passengers an explanation for two vans that, if the DCI account holds, were carrying a weapons pile.
Crime desk: Crime. Verified plates, unit names, counts and the Oliveti escape from Eastleigh Voice / DCI.
DCI should say when the 15 will be charged and in which court. NTSA and the shuttle operator should confirm whether KDM 377M and KDE 819U stay on the road pending the case.
Residents along Kisumu–Migori should treat the wanted notice as live and use the toll-free line rather than circulating unverified photos.
Readers should cross-check any deadline, fee, court date or programme claim against primary gazettes, agency circulars and court records before acting on this report.
Official gazettes, court rulings and agency circulars may update these facts after publication; readers should verify any deadline, fee or court date against primary sources before acting.
Based on Eastleigh Voice reporting of the DCI Kisumu operation. Suspects are not convicted; the leader remains at large per detectives.
