Police in Kericho County have launched an investigation after a daring nighttime heist in which a gang stole 77 bags of coffee valued at Sh4 million from the Kichawir Farmers’ Cooperative Society.
The Monday, November 17, incident has sent shockwaves through the region’s coffee sector, which has already been grappling with rising cases of theft targeting processed and parchment coffee across the country.
According to police reports, the gang — believed to be made up of about seven men — descended on the cooperative premises before disabling the security system. They vandalized CCTV cameras and destroyed the CPU containing recorded data, ensuring the footage could not be used to identify them.
Two security guards on duty were found injured and tied up inside a store, unable to raise alarm as the suspects loaded the coffee bags onto a waiting lorry before fleeing the scene. The guards were later rushed to a local hospital, where authorities say they are in stable condition.
Police have since visited the scene and confirmed that a full probe is underway. However, officers admitted that many similar cases reported in recent months across Kenya remain unsolved — a worrying trend for farmers and cooperatives already struggling with fluctuating coffee prices.
Authorities have promised to pursue the perpetrators and tighten security around coffee stores as harvesting peaks in several counties.
