Kenyan police arrest man with grenade haul
Police say the suspect, who was picked up after blasts in the capital Nairobi, also had six guns.
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| The attacks have forced Nairobi residents to stay away from entertainment places [AFP] |
Kenyan police have arrested a suspect with a cache of hand grenades and guns a day after blasts rocked the capital Nairobi, leaving at least one person dead and many injured.
Police Commissioner Mathew Iteere said on Tuesday the suspect was arrested with 13 grenades and six guns.
Charles Owino, the deputy police spokesman, told the Reuters news agency the supect, who was not named, was detained in Kayole, a low-income suburb about 15km from the centre of Nairobi.
Suspicion over the two explosions in a Nairobi bar and a bus terminus fell on al-Shabab, the Somalia-based armed group, but police have not established a link between the group and the attacks.
Al-Shabab had threatened to attack targets in Kenya after Kenyan troops entered Somalia in pursuit of al-Shabab over several kidnappings of western aid workers and visitors from northern Kenya which the group was suspected of carrying out.
The offensive in Somalia and Monday’s attacks in Nairobi have cast a pall over the normally lively entertainment scene in a capital once dubbed “the green city in the sun”.
Residents are avoiding crowded places for fear of attacks.
In downtown Nairobi, security has been stepped up outside major hotels with some deploying sniffer dogs while some government buildings have stopped vehicles parking in front.
Village Market, a shopping mall with restaurants, a cinema and a bowling ally in the upmarket Gigiri area that is home to the UN offices, cancelled its family Halloween party set for Saturday due to fears of attacks.
“This decision was not in response to a specific threat or concern, but rather a precautionary measure in light of this week’s past events in Nairobi,” Village Market’s management said in a statement.