'I was drugged and almost robbed at Westside mall parking lot'

It was during the festive season when Jane* had gone to shop at Nakuru's Westside mall. After doing her shopping, she exited and headed towards her car.

“My car was parked on the stretch next to KFC on the side of the exit. So, I am not really sure whether the assailants followed me from the mall to the parking lot but when I got into my car, I had already locked my doors and I only had my window slightly opened as I was getting ready to reverse,” she says.

Jane says in the process of trying to find a way to reverse her vehicle, she remembers a figure walking past her car who passed a white handkerchief across her face.

“Immediately that happened, another person was trying to open the front passenger door. Luckily, the door was locked. I instantly started feeling drowsy and so I just kept the car where it was and after I switched off the engine, I was asleep,” she says.

Jane says she slept in her car for two and a half hours.

“I went to the mall at around 6:30 pm. It was at around 8 pm when I had regained some consciousness but I could not remember what had happened. I drove back home and called a doctor who examined me,” she adds.

“The doctor prescribed some medication but for the better part of two days, I was vomiting and was very sleepy. On the third day I decided to follow up with the personnel at the mall on the issue,” she says.

Upon seeking answers from one of the supervisors of the KK security company that mans the mall, Jane says the supervisor told her there was little he could do since there were no CCTV cameras on that stretch.

The supervisor told her and the friend who accompanied her, “Hatujuangi kama kitu kama hio hufanyika hapa, lakini kama ulikuwa umepark hio area, hio area hainanga CCTV” 

Jane says that they wanted more details with regards to her type of car, but she did not want to expose herself further since no help was forthcoming.

Nakuru residents took to social media to raise concern over cases of individuals who have been drugged by robbers at the parking lot in West side mall.

In the post seen by Mtaa Wangu, put up by Mbunge Aliyeparara, a conversation ensued among some of the users who were shocked by this revelation.

One of the user’s Patrick Shaw confirms the same saying, “Sometimes last year, a friend’s car was broken into and a laptop stolen hapo karibu na hoteli ya kuku”

We visited the area Jane had described and indeed we could tell there was no CCTV covering that area of the parking. The area is especially convenient for those who may want to visit KFC.

West side mall is the largest mall in Nakuru, housing some of the biggest brands nationally and internationally, including KFC, LC Waikiki, Java House and Aga Khan Hospital. 

The mall is strategically located near the KFA roundabout, making it a one stop shop for those who do their shopping and go home escaping the traffic jam that is experienced in the city center especially in the rush hour.

Jane concludes by saying that she only hopes the issue will be looked into so that no one else falls victim to the same.

“It is the biggest mall in Nakuru and it is the one place where you can get everything you need at once. Therefore, they should prioritize the security,” she says.