Two Kenya Airways (KQ) employees are currently being detained by the Military Intelligence Unit in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
The duo was arrested at KQ’s airport office in Kinshasa, with their phones seized and all access denied, according to a communication from KQ seen by BRK.
The employees were arrested on Friday, April 19, 2024, and have remained in custody to date. Their detention is allegedly linked to missing customs documentation for valuable cargo that was supposed to be transported on a KQ flight on April 12th, 2024. However, KQ maintains that the cargo was not uplifted or accepted due to incomplete documentation.
On April 23, 2024, Kenyan embassy officials and a few KQ staff were allowed to visit the detained employees, albeit briefly. Subsequently, on Wednesday, KQ filed an application in the DRC’s military court for the unconditional release of the two staff members.
The court granted KQ’s request for their release; however, despite the court order, DRC authorities continue to hold them incommunicado.
“We are perturbed by this action targeting innocent staff and consider it harassment targeting Kenya Airways’ business. KQ continues to cooperate with the investigating agencies and is working with the relevant government entities in both the DRC and Kenya to ensure this matter is resolved,” the statement signed by KQ CEO Allan Kilavuka says.
