Police in Garissa have arrested two key suspects believed to be the masterminds behind a wave of violent robberies and a brazen shooting incident along the Garissa-Nairobi highway, signaling a breakthrough in the fight against highway banditry.

The arrests followed a dramatic 24-hour operation involving a multi-agency team of General Service Unit (GSU) officers and local detectives. The suspects, described as "armed and dangerous," were cornered in a hideout in the outskirts of Garissa town, recovering an AK-47 rifle and several rounds of ammunition.

Terror on the Tarmac

The crackdown was triggered by a harrowing incident on Monday night where a bus heading to Nairobi was sprayed with bullets near Modogashe. While the driver miraculously managed to speed through the ambush, three passengers sustained gunshot wounds. The gang then turned their attention to a personal vehicle, robbing the occupants of cash and valuables worth thousands of shillings.

"These criminals have been terrorizing travelers and holding our economy hostage," said North Eastern Regional Commissioner John Otieno. "Their days are numbered. We have the names of their accomplices, and we are coming for them."

• The Modus Operandi: The gang utilizes motorbikes to escape into the thorny scrubland after staging ambushes, making them difficult to track with conventional vehicles.
• Community Intelligence: The breakthrough came thanks to a tip-off from local elders, who have grown weary of the insecurity tarnishing the region’s reputation. "The community is our eyes and ears," Otieno noted.
• Security revamp: In response to the spike in attacks, the Ministry of Interior has announced increased patrols and the deployment of drone surveillance technology along the porous highway stretches.

A Region on Edge

Garissa has long struggled with the dual threat of common banditry and terror-related cells. The line between the two often blurs, with criminal gangs sometimes selling intelligence or loot to Al-Shabaab sympathizers. These arrests are a morale booster for the weary residents, but the underlying drivers of crime—youth unemployment and proliferation of small arms—remain unaddressed.

As the suspects await arraignment, the victims recovering in Garissa County Referral Hospital serve as a painful reminder that safety on the northern corridors is still a luxury, not a guarantee.