There was drama in Busia Town on Saturday, December 6, 2025, after 14 Congolese nationals were detained by police for being in the country illegally. The group was found stranded at a petrol station as they awaited transport to Nairobi.
Found Stranded at Petrol Station
According to police, the group appeared confused and exhausted when officers approached them. They revealed they were waiting for a van driver who was supposed to pick them up and drive them to Nairobi.
Investigators believe the group accessed Kenya through ungazetted routes along the porous Busia border, a common passageway for human smuggling networks.
No Travel Documents
Police said the 14 individuals could not produce any travel documents, raising immediate suspicion. Their suspected smuggler reportedly switched off his mobile phone and disappeared after learning the group had been intercepted.
The Congolese nationals were placed in custody pending formal processing and possible repatriation.
Human Smuggling Cases Rising in Border Towns
Security agencies say incidents involving foreigners entering Kenya illegally through unofficial routes have been increasing, particularly in Busia and Turkana counties.
While many of the intercepted migrants are usually from Somalia, Ethiopia, and Eritrea, police say the majority are Ethiopians travelling through Kenya towards South Africa or the Middle East.
Recent Arrests Across the Region
The Busia arrest comes barely a week after 44 Ethiopians and Eritreans were stopped at the Kibish border in Turkana County as they attempted to cross into Kenya in dramatic fashion.
In another incident, police in Kanduyi, Bungoma County, detained ten Somali nationals found squeezed inside a salon car coming from Uganda. They claimed they were headed to Eldoret and had sneaked out of a refugee camp.
Authorities say surveillance has been intensified along the Kenya-Uganda and Kenya-Ethiopia borders to curb smuggling syndicates that prey on vulnerable migrants.
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