Three suspects have been arrested by police in connection with a highway robbery in Kibwezi, Makueni County of Kenya.

The suspects, who include a police officer, are accused of hijacking a lorry carrying 522 bags of rice on its way from Mombasa to Nairobi.

The arrests followed an intensive investigation by the Kibwezi Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) after the lorry, an Isuzu with registration number KCY 107U, was reported missing along the highway. The vehicle was intercepted by six armed men in the Thange area, who took control of the lorry and its valuable cargo.

Among those arrested is Francis Mutiso, a police officer based at Kibwezi Police Station, who was allegedly in full uniform and armed during the robbery. The other suspects have been identified as Juda Kipkoech Kandie and John Maingi.

The stolen lorry, loaded with 25-kilogram bags of rice, was eventually recovered in the Manyanga area, not far from Kibwezi. The lorry’s driver was found abandoned in the Ngwata area, having been left unharmed by the robbers.

In addition to the lorry, police also detained a Probox vehicle, registration number KDD 396T, which is believed to have been used in the execution of the crime.