Mombasa Court Detains Seven Soldiers in KSh 192M Meth Trafficking Probe

A Mombasa court has ordered the detention of seven military personnel for ten days as investigators probe their alleged involvement in a methamphetamine trafficking operation valued at KSh 192 million.

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Senior Resident Magistrate Gladys Ollimo issued the ruling on Thursday, December 11, granting the Anti-Narcotics Unit additional time to complete forensic examinations of seized narcotics and analyze electronic evidence recovered during the arrests.

The soldiers face accusations of trafficking 25 kilograms of methamphetamine in crystalline form. Their apprehension came through a coordinated effort between detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations Headquarters and the Mombasa Regional Office.

Subsequent searches of the suspects’ residences and workplaces yielded additional narcotics and eleven mobile phones, according to a statement from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecution.

Prosecutors told the court that releasing the accused could jeopardize ongoing investigations into a broader drug distribution network. They expressed concerns that the suspects might interfere with witnesses or destroy digital evidence stored on confiscated devices.

Magistrate Ollimo determined that the substantial value of the seized drugs and the flight risk posed by the suspects warranted extended custody.

The arrests occur against a backdrop of intensifying drug trafficking activity along Kenya’s coastline. The Indian Ocean route has long served as a corridor for international crime syndicates moving narcotics across the region.

This case follows Kenya’s largest-ever maritime drug seizure in October 2025, when the Kenya Navy, working alongside INTERPOL and international partners, intercepted a vessel without flag registration approximately 630 kilometres off Mombasa. The operation recovered over one tonne of crystal methamphetamine with 98% purity, estimated at more than KSh 8 billion. Six Iranian nationals were taken into custody during that operation, which involved the Coast Guard Service, DCI Anti-Narcotics Unit, and the US Naval Criminal Investigative Service.

Kenya has also confronted growing domestic methamphetamine production. In 2024, authorities dismantled an illegal laboratory in Namanga connected to foreign criminal organizations.

The case returns to court on December 22 for mention as investigations continue.

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