Kenyan‑Ugandan Drug Plot Unravelled on Kisumu Highway

Police in Kisumu have disrupted a major narcotics smuggling operation after intercepting a lorry ferrying sugar from Uganda that was carrying 23 packs of cannabis. Two men – a Kenyan driver and a Ugandan passenger – were arrested in the operation, in what detectives have called a “significant breakthrough” in the fight against cross‑border drug trafficking.

Dramatic pursuit on the highway

According to a police statement, officers stationed at a routine roadblock along the Ahero–Ngere section of the Kisumu–Busia highway flagged down a suspicious truck, but the driver attempted to speed away. Officers pursued the vehicle and managed to stop it a few kilometres away . A search revealed the truck, which was ostensibly transporting sugar from Uganda, was hiding 23 packs of cannabis wrapped in yellow nylon paper . The haul was seized, and both the driver and his Ugandan passenger were taken into custody pending prosecution.

The seizure follows another major bust in Nairobi’s Nyamakima area just days earlier, when traffic police seized 14 sacks of cannabis from a lorry and arrested its crew . On 14 January, detectives from the Anti‑Narcotics Unit also recovered heroin worth Sh1.19 million from a motorcycle in Nakuru, underscoring the breadth of Kenya’s narcotics problem .

Porous border under scrutiny

Kisumu County Commander described the operation as “a strong message to traffickers” that western Kenya will no longer serve as a transit route. Officers believe the involvement of a Ugandan national points to a transnational syndicate that sources cannabis from eastern Uganda before moving it to markets in Nairobi and Mombasa.

Authorities concede that the porous Kenya–Uganda border remains a weak link in the fight against contraband. Government officials have acknowledged that forged documents and drug trafficking constitute the largest share of cross‑border crimes, alongside sugar and other contraband . To counter this, the Interior Ministry recently announced plans to construct patrol bases at Suam, Lwakhakha and Busia to detect and deter illegal entries .

Interior Principal Secretary Raymond Omollo noted that seizures of narcotics accounted for about 21 per cent of criminal cases reported at the western border last year, second only to forgery . He called drug trafficking “a persistent threat to national security and public health” and said the new patrol bases will bolster collaboration between the Kenya Revenue Authority, Directorate of Criminal Investigations and security agencies from both countries.

Community vigilance and multi‑agency cooperation

The Directorate of Criminal Investigations has urged members of the public to remain vigilant and report suspicious activities through the anonymous Fichua Kwa DCI hotline . Detectives say tip‑offs from citizens were instrumental in this week’s seizure in Kisumu.

“This case demonstrates the power of collaboration between citizens and law enforcement,” the DCI said in a statement . “We are committed to dismantling networks that prey on vulnerable communities through the trade of psychotropic substances.”

For now, the two suspects await arraignment, and investigators are working to identify the masterminds behind the shipment. With new border patrol bases and intensified surveillance on the horizon, authorities hope to choke off a supply chain that has used western Kenya’s highways to funnel drugs to urban centres.