DCI detectives on Thursday, May 9 raided a site off Kangundo Road, Nairobi, and seized thousands of litres of siphoned fuel.

The detectives — drawn from the Operations Support Unit — confiscated from the site a trailer, two fuel tankers, generators fitted with hosepipes, funnels, 20-litre jerrycans and several tanks containing unestablished amounts of siphoned fuel.

The detectives were acting on a tip-off by a concerned member of the public who noted a spillage of the fuel, as the illegal business is being operated just next to a supermarket and an open-air market along KCC Road.

No suspect was arrested during the raid as those involved got wind of police presence through their informers and evaded arrest using a panya route.

Preliminary investigations have revealed that the illegal business operators are linked to the April 12, 2024 raid conducted behind Shell Petrol Station off Lunga Lunga Road in Nairobi.

During the April 12 raid, 41 suspects were arrested and charged, but the five tankers at the site were later released through a court order.

“The DCI thanks members of the public who continue to volunteer actionable information on this illegal business, as they contribute pragmatically to prevention of loss of lives through unfortunate cases of infernos such as the dreadful February 2 Embakasi gas explosion,” the DCI says.

The DCI is further inviting all stakeholders — including licensed distributors and government agencies — to come together in an effort to pool forces that will break the organized criminal rings.