Police recover bags of stolen 'mercury sugar', arrest suspect

Police have recovered some of the 5,000 bags of sugar suspected to contain mercury that were stolen from the Bollore godown in Changamwe, Mombasa County, last week.

A senior detective who sought anonymity said officers in Jomvu confiscated the sugar from a house in Bangladesh slum, also in Changamwe.

They surrounded the house in the operation that began on Saturday morning.

OWNER ARRESTED

The officers arrested the owner of the house, a woman, for questioning, on suspicion that she was among those who broke into the godown.

The source said, ”The Bangladesh community helped us recover the goods."

The detective urged patience until officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations finish the investigation.

Mombasa Urban DCIO Anthony Muriithi said did not give details of the operation.

But he said, "What we have nabbed is fertiliser. We are following up on the sugar."

Mr Muriithi said more than 15 police officers were sent to the house and that police would later brief the media on the matter.

300 BAGS

Last week, Changamwe Sub-county Police commander Daudi Loronyokwe said another 300 bags of "good" sugar were also stolen from the godown.

Mr Loronyokwe said seven people were arrested in connection to the theft of the 300 bags.

"The watchman who had been guarding the mercury sugar escaped but we are looking for him," he said.

The theft is said to have taken place in the last three weeks and is believed to have been an inside job, according to Mr Loronyokwe.