Listen to This Article Enhance your reading experience by listening to this article.

Al-Shabaab militants shot dead a Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) officer in Lafey, Mandera county yesterday morning. The unknown number of the gunmen then hijacked a vehicle, which they used to escape from the scene after the attack.

The local police commander said they threw away the body of the deceased as they were escaping towards a neighbouring country.

A passenger who was in the car was taken away by the gunmen but he was later found abandoned in the bushes with serious injuries. Locals have identified the victim as Muhumed Bashir, a pump attendant at a local petrol station. He is currently admitted at Lafey Sub-County Referral Hospital in serious condition. Several other residents from the area around Lafey police post are also nursing injuries in hospital after getting hit by stray bullets.

The area is near the Kenya-Somalia common border which is usually breached by the terror group.  The attack comes just two days before President William Ruto visits the neighbouring Wajir County for a meeting with the pastoralist community.

As a result, a multi-agency operation was yesterday launched to track down the attackers and also thwart any other planned attacks.

Ultimate price

According to police headquarters, a number of attacks have been thwarted in the region. There has been a significant reduction in such attacks both in the North-Eastern region and the Boni enclave.

In the last one year, at least 30 officers have been killed in the line of duty. Out of the 30, nine officers were from the Border Patrol Unit (BPU) who were ambushed between May 10 and October 16 this year.

The Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja, speaking during a recent commemorative ceremony, said the NPS will continue to support the families of the officers.