By Lauryne Akoth
The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) Operations Support Unit has arrested three suspects after intercepting 739 bags of subsidized fertilizer.
According to the DCI, the tactical unit was deployed following several cases of theft of government-subsidized fertilizer from the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB)
Ali Abdi Fatah, Abdi Jabar Hussein & Bonface Ouma Awili were apprehended at the Baraka shop cereal store within Matisi market along the Kitale-Endebess road.
Detectives were able to recover assorted brands of fertilizer including 424 bags of Falcon CAN, 43 bags of Tupande, 98 bags of Mavuno, 71 bags of KEL Green NPK (50 kgs each), and 20 bags of NPSB-OCP.
Additionally, four bags of DAP-OCP, 26 bags of FOMI OTESHA, 34 bags of Simba Urea, 16 bags of FALCON Ammonia Sulphate, and one bag of NAFAKA Plus weighing 50kg were also intercepted.
The three suspects were caught preparing the fertilizer for shipment to Uganda. The estimated value of the intercepted fertilizer stands at Kshs 1,847,500.
In addition to the bags of fertilizer, the tactical unit also retrieved delivery notes from NCPB Kitale, Malaba, Moi’s Bridge, Isiolo, and Maua NCPB depots.
Authentication of the fertilizer is currently underway as the suspects await arraignment.
Their arrest comes in the wake of the fake fertilizer scandal that has been making headlines in recent weeks. Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mithika Linturi announced that the government has launched a probe into the counterfeit fertilizer.
The government however denied any links to the alleged fake fertilizer. Speaking at a presser, the government spokesperson Dr. Isaac Mwaura clarified that the fertilizer flagged as fake is a product sold commercially under an agency arrangement outside the NCPB system.
Additionally, he emphasized that all fertilizers distributed under the Government Subsidized Program are sold in bags clearly labeled as ‘Government Subsidized Fertilizer’ and marked ‘Not for Resale’.
The government also reaffirmed that initial tests conducted by the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) confirmed that the fake fertilizer was not among those supplied under the subsidy program through the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB).
Read more: Govt Denies Links To Fake Fertilizer