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A terror suspect arrested at President Uhuru Kenyatta’s Gatundu family residence will remain in custody alongside another suspect for 14 days as investigations are conducted.
The Anti-Terrorism Police Unit successfully applied to have Said Mire Siyad, who was arrested at the President’s ancestral home on Tuesday, and Omar Said Ahmed, arrested at KenGen company Mombasa Road, detained for 14 days to allow police to complete investigations.
This is even as it emerged that the United States has frozen assets owned by two al Shabaab members, one of whom is believed to be the leader of the extremist group while the other is linked to the recent Garissa University attack.
In a sworn affidavit, ATPU told Nairobi Resident Magistrate Eddah Agade that Siyad’s motive for trespassing on the President’s rural home could not be immediately established. State Prosecutor Daniel Karuri said police believed the accused had been sent to the residence to carry out surveillance for a terrorism attack.
Pursuant to brief investigations carried out, the police believe the accused had other associates who were yet to be arrested. In his defence, Siyad said that he had gone to the presidential residence to seek for help as he had lost his way.
“It is good for the investigating officers to carry out investigations for I am not a terrorist,†he said. ATPU also believed that his co-accused, Omar Said Ahmed, was conducting radicalisation programmes for the youth and facilitated the disappearance of his son to join al Shabaab.
Karuri told the court investigations required extraction of mobile number records and further investigations as far afield as West Pokot.
He stated the respondents were flight risks, thus should not be released on bond. The affidavit stated that the suspects were engaging in organised crimeinal activities. The two were remanded at Kilimani Police Station. Their case will be mentioned on May 5.
Meanwhile, six other terror suspects, including a woman, were arraigned in the same court but did not take plea as the prosecution requested that they be detained for five days as police conclude investigations.
Three of the suspects, Abdikadir Maalim Hussein, Ahmednoor Abdi Adan, and Mohamed Hussein Maalim, were arrested by members of the public at Gikomba market on Tuesday and handed over to ATPU after their mission raised suspicion. Police believe the three were carrying out surveillance in preparation for an attack.
The other three—Ali Mustafa Abdul-Latif, Matiam Wambui Suleiman and Mohamed Njiru—were arrested by members of the public at on Tuesday at Kencom bus stop, while taking photographs of the area.
Their lawyer, Chacha Mwita, opposed the application stating that the first two accused were newly-weds who only got married on Friday. He said the three were celebrating when they were arrested.
The six will be detained at Kilimani Police Station for five days. In a related development, the US has frozen assets owned by two al Shabaab suspects.
The US Department of State issued a statement declaring that all property subject to US jurisdiction in which Ahmed Diriye, the leader of al Shabaab and Mahad Karate the Garissa attack suspect, has interest in has been blocked and frozen any assets they have in the US.
In a statement from the Office of the Spokesperson in Washington, the US said it has prohibited its people from engaging in any transactions with Diriye or Karate, or to their benefit. The Department of State took the action in consultation with the Departments of Justice and Treasury.
- People Daily
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