There was drama at a public market in Tangulbei, Tiaty, Baringo county when police clashed with a mob that managed to free a suspected bandit who had been arrested.

Three police officers were injured in the Friday drama at Tangulbei Livestock Market when the team went to arrest a wanted bandits leader identified as Limo Yarakwang, 32.

According to police, the team had handcuffed the suspect when a group of youths who were at the market started to stone them.

This forced one of the officers to shoot in the air to scare the mob. And in the process, the suspect who had been handcuffed managed to escape.

The market was closed in the chaos as more officers arrived to back up the injured team.

Police said the suspect had been on the wanted list for cattle rustling incidents in the area and they wanted to interrogate him.

More officers are on the ground in an effort to arrest the suspect who escaped with the handcuff.

The area is among those facing persistent cases of cattle rustling.

On Friday evening, a gang roaming along the Kitale-Lodwar highway shot at a matatu and injured a passenger.

A hunt on the attackers is ongoing. The attack comes days after a tough talk by Interior CS Kithure Kindiki who visited the area over the weekend.

Residents are now living in fear as they peg their hope on the promise by the government to find a working strategy to weed out the bandits.

Up to 279 people were killed in different cattle rustling-related incidents in the country in 2022.

A police report indicates 32 police officers were also killed in the incidents. Further thousands of animals were stolen and either sold off or traded for cultural events.

And as part of efforts to address the menace, a new commander for the National Police Reservists was last week named in fresh efforts to revamp the unit and bolster operations in cattle rustling-prone areas.

Former Eastern regional police commander Ronald Opili was tasked to take over the new unit consisting of more than 10,000 personnel.

The NPR formerly known as Kenya Police Reserve (KPR) was formed in 1948 to assist the regular police in the maintenance of law and order.

They only exist in arid and semi-arid rural areas of Kenya, particularly in Northern Kenya. The military has actively joined in fresh measures to contain the menace of cattle rustling in parts of northern Kenya.

General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Western Command, Maj Gen David Tarus is leading a new multi-agency security team of commanders in ‘Operation Komesha Uhalifu’ which is targeting the region.

This is after earlier mapping showed the menace is likely to get worse in the coming days.

Maj Gen Tarus has been leading a series of meetings in the area as part of efforts to find a lasting solution to the issue.

Other players include police, national administration and county governments.

The targeted areas include Baringo, West Pokot, Turkana, Samburu, Marsabit and Isiolo where the menace has taken a toll.

The teams are also identifying things that can be done immediately to address the menace. They include the construction of dams.

Interior CS Kithure Kindiki said the government is deploying a multi-faceted and multi-agency response.

He added as part of the efforts, the government will pursue financiers and beneficiaries of the cattle rustling menace which has led to the deaths and mass displacement of hundreds of citizens.

Besides retributive reaction, strategic investment and sustainable development have also taken a prominent place among the government’s planned crime control interventions for Kenya’s Northern frontier and the Kerio Valley belt.

According to Kindiki, the long-term vision is to empower the communities to actively take part in the war against animal rustling and undertake legitimate nation-building activities.

He said plans to distribute subsidized agricultural inputs and extension services to area residents in a bid to revive farming activities as a source of livelihood.

“We are coming to dismantle not only the criminals themselves but also to bring down the entire chain that has been the cattle and livestock rustling industry,” he said.