Written By Monica Makali ||
Twenty people have been arrested in an illicit second-generation distillation factory in Tala-Matungulu, Machakos County.
The suspects were nabbed during a police swoop in the illegal plant located within Tala market in Matungulu sub-county
Everyone Wekesa, Matungulu deputy county commissioner said the suspects included nine men and eleven women respectively.
“As Matungulu sub-county security team, We are here in an operation, our officers who were on patrol came across this building and upon search, they found out that there was the manufacturing of illicit liquor which is in form of wines and spirits,” Wekesa said.
Wekesa who was accompanied by Matungulu sub-county police commander Peter Omondi alongside other security chiefs addressed the press at the scene hours after the arrests.
She said the officers then alerted the officer who was in-charge who in turn immediately informed OCS Tala police station who then alerted the sub-county security team.
“We came down to confirm what exactly was happening and as you can see around, this place was being used for manufacturing illicit liquor. The twenty arrested suspects included their supervisor, ” Wekesa said.
Wekesa said the has no license from any relevant authorities as required by the law and the police were in pursuit of the owner who was still at large by press time.
The administrator said preliminary investigations revealed that all the suspects hailed from Kariobangi and Kayole estates in Nairobi.
“There is no sign of people staying here. The house is under construction hence not easy to suspect that such business takes place here,: Wekesa said.
Wekesa said the brewers had operated for only four days before police struck.
“This was their fourth day in the premise. We managed to get them when they were about to release their first consignment to the market,” she said.
Wekesa added they will be vigilant to ensure that such illicit products don’t get to the market because they are dangerous and harmful to human health innsusting they are killer substances,” She said.
She confirmed some of the confiscated items from the breweries were 150 boxes of 20 pieces each parked in 250ml branded Fighter Extra, improved roller sticker labeled KRA, and 15 pieces of celotapes used to seal cartons. The KRA stickers were fake.
Other items were three bottles of tightening wood blocks, white hose pipes for distillation, assorted bottles, two rolls of Star light stickers, branded Star Light and Fighter stickers, and assorted empty bottles of 250ml.
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Wekesa said as a security team, they will be vigilant from sub-county to sub-location levels to ensure that no illicit trade takes place.
“We can’t entertain such businesses within our jurisdiction.”
She called on the public to volunteer information to security agencies so as to avert such kind of crimes in the sub-county.
