NAIROBI, Kenya, Oct 5 — A Lamu-bound passenger bus has been intercepted by a multi-agency security team at the Sabaki River Bridge in Malindi, leading to the discovery of a large consignment of cannabis sativa concealed in the luggage compartment.
According to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), the bus — registration number KDN 368W and operated by Tawakal Bus Service — was on its routine trip from Nairobi when officers flagged it down for inspection.
“What seemed like ordinary luggage turned out to be two bulky bales of cannabis sativa cleverly concealed among bundles of second-hand clothes,” the DCI said in a statement.
“But as detectives homed in on the suspicious bags, one passenger, believed to be the owner of the narcotics, made a daring escape, disappearing before officers could react.”
The DCI said the bus driver and conductor were arrested and taken into custody for questioning as a manhunt for the fleeing suspect intensifies. The seized narcotics have been detained as exhibits to support ongoing investigations.
The operation was conducted by a joint security team comprising DCI officers, anti-narcotics detectives, and National Police Service personnel manning the Sabaki checkpoint — a key inspection point for vehicles heading toward Lamu and the wider Coast region.
The checkpoint has in recent months become a major surveillance hub following increased reports of drug and contraband trafficking along the Malindi–Lamu highway.
In June, detectives in Kilifi County seized over 300 kilograms of bhang being transported in a private vehicle believed to be part of a wider supply network operating between the North Coast and Nairobi.
Similar interceptions have also been made in Tana River and Lamu, where authorities have linked drug trafficking to rising insecurity and youth radicalization.