Inside Nakuru's Feared Slums
A section of Flamingo estate in Nakuru East Sub County. The estate neighbor's Manyani estate to the South.
Ever heard of a place where there are more litres of illicit brew than there is water?
Well. Welcome to Bondeni slum in Nakuru City.
The populous informal settlement is the undisputed de facto capital of illicit brews and hard drugs in the region.
An investigation by this writer reveals that besides being the home of hard drugs and illicit liquor, which are sold even in food kiosks, the estate is a haven for the Confirm gang and other criminal groups that have been terrorising residents of Nakuru.
In the past months, several gang members have been smoked out of their hideouts in the area and arrested.
In Bondeni estate, the high rate of lawbreaking in broad daylight is visible even to people visiting for the first time.
But Bondeni is not alone.
The neighbouring slums of Kivumbini and Flamingo are the other dens of criminal gangs in Nakuru City.
Chang’aa, the poor man's drink, and other adulterated liquors are also considered cash crops in Bondeni, Kivumbini and Flamingo.
This is what fuels life in the informal settlements.
"Though police have profiled the informal settlements as crime hotspots, they are still safe havens for brewing chang'aa and busaa, as well as selling drugs including bhang. Even hard drugs like cocaine and opium are sold here," said John Kimani, a resident of Bondeni.
A resident of Kivumbini, who sought anonymity, said the slums have in the past years evolved into impregnable crime fortresses.
"Many criminal gang members have over time found the informal settlement areas safe havens to hide and conduct their criminal activities in,” he said.
It is in Kivumbini that alleged Confirm leader Dickson Macharia Waithera, alias Dico, 35, was smoked out and arrested in August last year.
During Dico's arrest, police also seized a consignment of bhang worth over Sh300,000, opium and laptops, which police said will undergo a forensic analysis.
Dico's elder brother Biggie, according to investigators, founded Confirm sometime in 2007, before it evolved into the deadly gang it is today.