Man arrested with 990 litres of ethanol and ammunition in posh Kiamunyi home detained for 14 days
Police escort the suspected owner of a mansion in Kiamunyi Estate, Rongai, Nakuru County, after a raid uncovered over 990 litres of suspected ethanol, 29 rounds of 9mm ammunition, KRA stickers and a bulletproof jacket. He is expected to be arraigned as investigations continue
A Nakuru court has ordered that a man arrested last week over suspected illicit alcohol manufacturing be detained for 14 days to allow police to complete investigations.
The court in its ruling on Wednesday granted the request by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) Rongai to detain Geoffrey Mureithi Kirinya, at Menengai Police Station for 14 days to allow investigators to finalize the case.
According to the miscellaneous application investigators need additional time to submit the suspected ethanol to the government chemist for analysis, liaise with the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) and KRA on whether regulatory requirements were met or forgery committed and further submit the recovered ammunition and magazine for ballistic examination at DCI Headquarters.
The police also need to confirm with the Firearms Licensing Board whether the respondent holds a valid firearm license.
While defending the application the police had argued that releasing the respondent on cash bail could allow him to abscond the court's jurisdiction or interfere with ongoing investigations.
Mureithi was arrested on July 20 at his apartment in Eden Estate, within the Kiamunyi area of Rongai Sub-county.
The affidavit states that a team of officers led by sub-county Police Commander Daniel Birech and SCCIO Rongai Richard Chemweno acted on intelligence before proceeding to the residence.
A search of the property allegedly recovered 33 black 30-litre jerricans containing liquid suspected to be ethanol, found inside a septic tank within the compound. Officers also recovered 29 rounds of 9mm ammunition, two holsters, an empty Ceska pistol magazine, a firearm-cleaning kit and a bulletproof jacket.
The affidavit further lists several Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) revenue stickers, along with a roll of stickers for brands including Best Gin, Vodka, Magic and Partiala, assorted 250ml packaging bottles, bottle tops, and other packaging materials.
Police suspects that Mureithi manufactures "second generation" alcoholic drinks.