Kenya: Press Releases: Telkom Kenya in Breakthrough Against Cable Vandals in Eldoret

Wednesday, 03 February 2010

Nairobi, 2 February 2010 --- Integrated telecommunications service provider Telkom Kenya and the Kenya Police today made a major breakthrough in their fight against transmission cables vandals with the arrest of five suspected masterminds in the North Rift Region. Following a spate of copper and fibre optic cable vandalism on its network, Telkom Kenya early this year embarked on a concerted effort to fight the vice using community policing strategies which now appear to be bearing fruit. Speaking when she confirmed the arrest of the three suspected masterminds in Eldoret town this afternoon, Telkom Kenya Head of Corporate Communications Angela Ng’ang’a-Mumo said the five were arrested in the joint operation led by Eldoret OCPD Muindi Kioko and are suspected of being behind a massive cable vandalism syndicate across the north rift through a network of operatives. Currently held at the Eldoret Central Police Station, the trio, are expected to be arraigned in court on 3 February 2010 to answer charges relating to cable vandalism and handling stolen goods following the recovery of copper and aluminum cables worth millions of shillings. “Investigations confirm that the three masterminds have been facilitating the rising cases of copper cable vandalism as they appear to be the main financiers,” she said, adding: “Once vandalized, our cables are burned in clearings within a nearby forest to remove the rubber insulation and later sold to these masterminds for onward sale as scrap copper wire.” On his part, Eldoret Police Boss Kioko explained that acting on a tip off, the joint operation had managed to net the suspects and locate a residential house within Kapsoya estate suspected to nerve centre for the suspects. While thanking the public for providing information leading to the arrest of the trio, Ms Ng’ang’a-Mumo confirmed that the firm’s adoption of community policing strategies was bearing fruit with more than a dozen arrests already made in a fortnight. In Eldoret, she explained that scrap copper has now been nicknamed as dawa and is retailing at between KES160 and KES200 in the backstreets. “It is our sincere hope that the arrest of the trio has however moved to effectively smash the racket by breaking this commercial chain,” she said. Given the increase in cable cuts on Telkom Kenya’s network, the firm has also reiterated the fact that it’s still not ruling out the possibility of corporate sabotage. Increased strategic cuts by evidently specialist technicians on both the firms copper and fibre optic lines have served to fuel the fear by Telkom Kenya that corporate saboteurs may be at play. The firm has repeatedly also warned that such cuts are increasingly eroding the country’s national security as the acts border on economic terrorism. Comments (0) Subscribe to this comment's feed Write comment Show/Hide comment form Name Email Title Comment smaller | bigger Subscribe via email (Registered users only) I have read and agree to the Terms of Usage. Add Comment