State agency: Country suffocating under yoke of criminal gangs

Criminals gangs have infiltrated the country's security sector, greatly compromising efforts to fight crime a government-sanctioned study reveals.

More worrying, there are more than 300 such gangs in the eleven counties sampled. The gangs are linked to serious crimes like murder, contract killing, kidnaping, human trafficking, rape, defilement, extortion and robbery, among others.

According to the study by National Crime Research Centre (NCRC), there is a resurgence of criminal gangs in the country. 82.3 per cent of Kenyans feel unsafe due to the activities of the gangs.

The research established that criminal gangs had permeated most of the key sectors of the country’s economy hence the need for adequate measures to stop them.

"The high infiltration of the security sector (90.8%) suggests that criminal gangs have established networks within law enforcement agencies, leading to possible compromised investigations, protection of criminals, and potential misuse of state resources," stated the study, which put on the spot, the criminal justice system for complicity. 

The findings pointed to the deep entrenchment of gangs in local communities bringing out regional variation in gang proliferation and expansion while exposing the adaptability and resilience of gangs in Nairobi, Mombasa, Kilifi, Nakuru, Bungoma, Kwale, Kiambu, Machakos, Kisumu, Busia and Garissa where the study was conducted between November and December 2024.

Proliferation of the gangs was highest in Kisumu at 89.3 per cent followed by Busia (88.7%) and Bungoma at 88.4% with some of the key indicators being: reports of gang related crime, rise in gang-related violence, intimidation or threats against local community members, expansion of criminal gang influence in youth groups, and witness accounts of criminal gang activities at odd hours.

Other indicators were increased visibility of criminal gang activities in public spaces, rising fear or reluctance among local community members to report crimes, spread of criminal gang activities to previously unaffected areas, and increased recruitment of vulnerable individuals into criminal gangs. 

In the study titled The Proliferation and Resilience of Criminal Gangs in Kenya, showed proliferation of gangs in Mombasa was 83.4 per cent followed by Kilifi 78.2  per cent and Kwale 71.1 per cent. Other counties sampled were Garissa 88.2 per cent, Nairobi 88.1 per cent while in Nakuru it was 84.4 per cent.

Persistence of gangs was linked to: peer pressure and influence (91.5%), vulnerabilities associated with high unemployment and poverty (88.5%), availability of illegal drugs (79.7%), broken or poor social and/or family support systems (67.3%), inadequate formal education among youth (53.9%), political exploitation (42.9%), and community cultural and social tolerance of criminal gangs at 38.3 per cent.

Other factors include underdevelopment and marginalization (29.7%), corruption among rogue government officials (27.5%), inadequate social services (22.9%), weak security policing of criminal gangs (22.2%), poor coordination among existing criminal justice agencies and other actors (15.6%), ready markets for stolen items (14.8%), weak prosecution of criminal gang members (12.2%), and inadequately sustained youth empowerment initiatives at 12.2 per cent.

A total sample size of 1,314 was targeted in the survey, but only 1,119 respondents were reached, representing a response rate of 85.2 per cent.

But Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja downplayed the findings maintining that the country was safe and urged Kenyans not to live under any illusion that criminal gangs have taken over.

"The country is safe, you can walk from your office to go take a cup of tea and nobody will touch you. However, there could be one reported crime here and there but that is not a sign that we're in trouble. We are on top of things and the country is not under the grip of gangs," said Kanja.

According to the police boss, they have been carrying out continous security operations to get rid off criminals among communities.

"You have seen the kind of action taken in Mombasa where we dealt with the vagabonds that were breaching the peace. I urge the people to go about their business and enjoy Easter without having to worry about insecurity," added Kanja.

The NCRC findings highlight the extent to which criminal gangs have spread across various counties, their modes of operation, and the socio-economic and structural factors sustaining their resilience.

“The proliferation and resilience of criminal gangs present a growing challenge to national security. Across Kenya, these gangs engage in criminal activities such as extortion, drug peddling or trafficking, robbery, and political violence, with far-reaching implications on the country’s development,” states the findings.

For infiltration of the security sector to stop, the researchers proposed internal vetting of security personnel, stronger oversight mechanisms, and enhanced anticorruption measures.

A senior police officer in Katani of Athi River Sub-county in Machakos said gangs like Gaza have have penetrated the land and natural resources, drugs and narcotics and the security sector.

According to the officer, the armed gangs are feared because they intimidate and threaten local community members, are hired by land grabbers to cause havoc, cause forcible detainer of land, engage in robberies and other serious crimes including killing.

“Gangs in Nairobi, you will find them in markets, transport, ICT, education, financial and housing sectors. Their activities include gambling, perpetuating Mpesa fraud, cyber-bullying, sending threating messages, control of matatu and motorbike stages, extortion of traders in the markets, charging construction materials at construction sites and radicalization of young boys in schools,” an official with a community organization in Mathare told the researchers.

The study made policy recommendations among them; the need to strengthen law and order enforcement and criminal justice system responses, enhance positive community engagement and public awareness, address socio-economic enablers of recruitment and retention in criminal gangs, and combating drug peddling and trafficking and substance abuse.

“While various mitigation measures have been implemented, their effectiveness remains limited due to resource constraints, weak law enforcement-community collaboration, and political interference,” noted the findings.

The infiltration of the public transport service sector at 53.1 per cent suggests that gangs control parts of the matatu industry, engaging in extortion, protection rackets, and targeted violence.

This distorts and disruptions the smooth flow of the transport economy. Strengthening public transport sector regulation, digital fare collection systems to minimize cash transactions, and law enforcement oversight is crucial in breaking criminal networks.

The research found out that there were 309 criminal gangs distributed across the eleven counties with Gaza/Gaza, 42 Brothers, Wakali Wao, Panga Boys, Chafu/Squad and Mungiki being notorious.

The six gangs were leading in terms of their presence in at least a third of the counties. Gaza/Gaza was present in eight counties, 42 Brothers (six counties), Wakali Wao (5 counties) while Panga Boys, Chafu/Squad and Mungiki were each in four counties. 

Mombasa lead in distribution of the number of known criminal gangs that were established to be 73 followed by Nairobi (56), Kilifi (47), Garissa (31), Kwale (29), Busia (29), Bungoma (28), Machakos (28), Nakuru (27), Kisumu (22) while Kiambu had 20. 

"The findings highlight the need to effectively tame all criminal gangs in the country, with a special focus being on Gaza/Gaza Family, 42 Brothers, Wakali Wao, Panga Boys, Chafu/Squad Chafu/Gang Chafu and Mungiki, which have all spread their tentacles across numerous counties and were likely to continue spreading further if not effectively checked," says the survey.

The study urged county security teams to design county-specific interventions to deal with criminal gangs in their jurisdictions.

At least a third of respondents gave various reasons why the criminal gangs were most dreaded. The reasons were: use of sharp bladed weapons such as pangas with the response being 87.2 per cent, use of extreme violence (78.3%), involvement in drug peddling or trafficking and abuse (65.9%), intimidation of local leaders and residents (65.5%), and engagement in serious crimes at 61.8 per cent

Others were ability to recruit vulnerable individuals with relative ease (50.0%), strong network and coordination among members (39.5%), rapid expansion of their membership or coverage (37.2%) and use of crude weapons (35.0%).

Counties were the gangs use sharp pangs were Nakuru (93.1%), Mombasa (90.6%), Kilifi (90.4%) and Garissa (89.2%. When it came to use of extreme violence, Garissa led at (96.1%), Nakuru (90.0%), Busia (88.7%) and Kilifi (83.5%).

About 88.9 per cent of residents cited involvement in drug peddling or trafficking and abuse as the reason they feared the criminal gangs followed by Nairobi (83.3%), Nakuru (77.5%) while 72.5 per cent of respondents in Garissa expressed similar fears.

In Mombasa 81.9 per cent of locals felt gangs intimidated local leaders and residents followed by Busia (77.4%), Kilifi (76.5%) and Kiambu (70.8%) while use of crude weapons was identified as the reason why residents dreaded gangs in Bungoma (74.0%), Busia (69.4%), Kiambu (57.7%) and Nairobi (56.0%).

“Out of the 37 criminal gangs I have mentioned to you, the most dreaded are Shiranga, Russia and Jamaica. Why they are dreaded it is because they mug, they waylay, they snatch, they continue snatching to date, there is robbery with violence, they kill, they rape, they sodomize, they have street fights, there is burglary and breakings," an official working with a community service organisation in Likoni area of Mombasa told the interviewers.

Further, the research found out that criminal gangs had permeated at least 14 sectors being security (90.8%), drugs and narcotics trade (70.5%), business and entrepreneurship (62.0%), public transport service (53.1%), political (38.7%), information and communication technology (31.1%), land and natural resources (22.1%), financial (20.6%), hospitality and entertainment (18.2%), and Education (17.2%), informal economy (7.9%), construction (5.9%), agriculture (4.1%) and health (2.9%).

Twelve criminal activities that gangs engaged in were identified by at least a third of the sample respondents.

Some 84.5 per cent of the respondents cited robberies, followed by assaults (80.9%), general stealing (80.6%), illicit drug distribution and trafficking (70.2%), burglary and breakings (64.8%), muggings (62.6%), grievous harm (48.2%), murder (41.0%), rape (38.3%), attacks on women (35.2%); extortion in public transport (34.4%) while 33.9 per cent identified defilement.

Other crimes were theft and resale of business merchandise, theft of motor cycles/boda boda, undue political patronage and control over local political processes, corruption within agencies in criminal justice, infiltration of community policing initiatives, malicious damages, and running recruitment activities for radicalization and drug peddling or trafficking in educational and training institutions.

Further, the gangs engaged in Mpesa fraud, cybercrime, extortion of and running illegal protection rackets, infiltration of legitimate business for illegal activities, illegal acquisition of land, illicit trade, illegal taxation of traders and control of markets, money laundering, illegal activities in prostitution, sabotaging competitor's business operations, raiding people’s home, illicit firearms trafficking and smuggling, extortion in construction and real estate industry, running illegal utilities, such as water or electricity connections, carjacking, counterfeiting, car theft, abduction/kidnapping for ransom, contract killing, human trafficking including trafficking for sex, labour and organs.

The gangs are also responsible for attempted rape, attacking tourists, stealing of livestock, intimidation and threatening to kill, perpetuating environmental crimes, obtaining by false pretense, forgery of government documents, disruption of social gatherings, illegal trafficking of explosives, advocating for and carrying out female genital mutilation, and illegal administration of justice in the community.

The most prominent modes of operation were reported by at least 50 per cent the sample respondents featured in the eleven counties.

They were carrying out attacks, using violence and intimidation, use of motor cycles to ease their mobility, exploiting vulnerabilities, active recruitment of new members, intelligence gathering on potential targets, law enforcement activities, and rival gangs through surveillance and informants, use of technology for communication and coordination, impersonating police officers, wearing police regalia and carrying tools of work resembling those of the police, and exploiting legal loopholes and insufficient regulation within the informal sector to conduct their activities with minimal disruptions among others.

"The normalization of gang activities (50.5%) indicates a cultural shift where crime is increasingly seen as an inevitable part of daily life in society. This has the potential to increase lawlessness in the country. The finding therefore suggests the need for intensive community sensitization initiatives to counter gang glorification and promote alternative narratives, especially among the youth," says the study.