Quarries in Mandera shut following abduction of two workers

Quarry mining site in Mandera.[File, Standard]

All quarries in Mandera County have been closed following the abduction of two workers on Wednesday.

Martin Musyoki and John Kambua are still missing after being seized by four armed Al Shabaab militants who ambushed them in Shimbir Fatuma village, Mandera Central Sub County.

The two were among six loaders on a truck that was heading to Chachabole quarry owned by Ibrahim Edinow Maalim. On the way, the truck driven by Sadiqow Muqtar Gedi was ambushed by the insurgents at around 11 am.

The truck which had eight people, was stopped and the occupants separated. Musyoki and Kambua who are non-locals were seized while the rest fled into a nearby thicket. The whereabouts of the two who hail from Nyeri and Sagana respectively remain unknown.

Mandera County Criminal Investigations Officer Pius Gitari said efforts are being made to trace them.

Following the latest incident, the county security committee immediately shut all quarries until proper security measures to protect workers were put in place.

Quarry owners will be required to guarantee the security of their workers before they are allowed to resume operations.

“They will have to ensure the workers are escorted by security as well as being protected at their residences,” said a source.

The incident follows the arrest of three suspected terrorists were arrested for smuggling from Somalia, a cache of ammunitions.

Abdihakim Muhumed Mahamed alias Bench and 32-year-old Abdi Olow Abdi alias Abei were seized on suspicion of buying the smuggled bullets and later supplying the same in the country.

According to police, a suspect from Somalia arrested at Bulla Hawa, the previous day provided information that led to the arrest of the two Kenyans.

He was carrying bullets concealed in a 20-litre jerrican, which he intended to hand over to Muhumed, 25, and Olow whose mobile phones were handed over to the Anti-Terrorism Police Unit (APTU) for forensic analysis.

A key suspect in the supply chain is being sought in the capital city of Nairobi where some the ammunition is supplied.

According to Gitari, the suspects are part of a larger group behind the supply of illegal ammunition in Kenya.

“Some of the bullets are used for carrying out attacks in quarries as well as fanning tribal conflicts in the region,” said the senior detective.

In the rest past, Al Shabaab militants have been targeting quarry workers with most of the victims being non-locals who are either killed or held in captivity.